Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili highlights Georgia’s stalled EU accession, rising anti-Western rhetoric, and the ruling party’s troubling alignment with Russian interests, while affirming Georgian people’s support for Ukraine.
Last October, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine would strike Russia's Black Sea Fleet wherever it will be stationed — implying that could also include occupied parts of Georgia, where Russia has kept a garrison and is rumored to be constructing a naval base. "We will reach them everywhere," the president
"All options are on the table" if Georgia does not reverse its trend toward authoritarianism, "including the potential temporary suspension of the visa liberalization scheme," a spokesperson for the European Commission told Politico.
The de facto leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party stunned Georgians — who are rarely shocked by the turbulent political situation in the country — by declaring that Georgia should "apologize" for Russia's 2008 war against the country. Oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili's statement on Sept. 14 was a campaign promise made ahead
The bills would ban gender transition, adoption by same-sex couples, and forbid gatherings or the distribution of information "aimed at promoting" LGBTQ relationships.
"Today's action underscores our concern about the consequences of anti-democratic actions in Georgia and efforts by key individuals to use violence and intimidation to achieve their aims," said Treasury official Bradley Smith.
Kobakhidze called the creation of the state fund a "step towards" NGOs and media, which allegedly risk losing funding from international donors if the law is followed.
Ukraine's new Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, said on Sept. 8 that he had recalled the Ukrainian charge d'affaires from Georgia, saying that "ambassadors of a country at war cannot be detached from the war's realities."
In an appeal posted on Facebook, Georgian Dream emphasized that it needs to obtain a "constitutional majority in order to qualitatively improve the political system, which cannot be achieved without removing the collective 'United National Movement' from politics."
Recent reflections on the Russo-Ukrainian peace talks in Istanbul at the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022 offer new insights and perspectives. However, they often overlook a crucial factor: Moscow’s dismal history of honoring political and security agreements with former Soviet republics. Many analyses naively assume the Kremlin
Vaso Kardava was reportedly killed by a Russian artillery strike near Soledar-Siversk in Donetsk Oblast. He had been fighting in Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, the Georgian media outlet Mtavari reported.
Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder and honorary chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, declined to meet with U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Congressman Mike Turner during their visit to Georgia.
When Bidzina Ivanishvili entered politics in 2011 and created the Georgian Dream party, he promised to give up his Russian passport and divest from business interests in the country.
The European Commision's spokesperson, Peter Stano, reiterated the EU's concerns over the law, calling it "a step backward" on the country's path to European integration.
Failure to register as a foreign agent by Sept. 1, when the official monitoring period begins, could result in fines of 25,000 Georgian lari ($9,200).
The move is part of a U.S. government-initiated full review of its relationship with Georgia on May 30, soon after the Georgian parliament passed a controversial bill requiring organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as "foreign agents."
Bondo Gagnidze was reportedly killed fighting in Luhansk Oblast. Another Georgian fighter was also wounded, the Civil.ge media outlet said.
The lawsuit was signed by 32 opposition lawmakers on July 22.
Georgia's State Security Service (SUS) "is investigating the facts of the preparation of the murder of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream party, organized and financed by former high-ranking officials of the Georgian government and former employees of law enforcement agencies in Ukraine," the SUS wrote on Facebook.
The opposition media outlet Mtavari reported on July 21 that at least four Georgians who fought in Ukraine have been sought for interrogation by Georgia's State Security Service (SUS).
The impact of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's potential reelection will also cause "our region (to) calm down sooner, which will change the attitude towards Georgia as well," Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze claimed
Andrei Klimov, Deputy Chairman of Russia's Federation Council, stated that Russia is prepared to assist Georgia's ruling party, "Georgian Dream," in retaining power if requested.
According to the Caucasus Barometer survey, 69% of respondents consider Russia as Georgia's main enemy. This figure has increased compared to previous years.
Georgian President Salome Zourabishvili has filed a motion against the law on "foreign agents" to the Constitutional Court of Georgia. The bill requires organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as "foreign agents," mirroring repressive Russian legislation used to crack down on Kremlin critics.
In comments to The Kyiv Independent in February, the Georgian Legion, one of the leading groups of Georgian volunteer fighters, said that at least 59 Georgian fighters had been killed in battle since the beginning of the full-scale war.
"Russian occupation forces are responsible for all destructive actions committed on the occupied territories of Georgia, as well as along the occupation line," Georgia's State Security Service (SUS) said.
The foreign agent laws adopted this year by Georgia and Kyrgyzstan are not fueling mounting authoritarianism and crony rule. They are the result of it. Critics of the countries’ regimes derisively allude to the legislation cracking down on nongovernmental organizations that receive funds from abroad as “Russian laws.” This is
Brussels has frozen 30 million euros ($32 million) in defense sector funding for Georgia after halting its EU accession process in June, EU Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski said on July 9.
The joint exercise "Noble Partner," originally scheduled to take place in Georgia from July 25 to Aug. 6., will be put on hold indefinitely, the Defense Department announced.
The pilot, Kakhaber Zurabishvili, was killed in the crash. The Georgian Defense Ministry said the cause of the crash was being determined.
The sea voyage from the city of Chernomorsk in Ukraine's Odesa Oblast to Batumi in Georgia will be the first between the countries since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
The initial round of sanctions entailed travel bans on "dozens" of individuals, including members of the ruling Georgian Dream party, other members of parliament, law enforcement, and other private citizens, said U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.
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