Police once again used water cannon to break up protests /Giorgi ARJEVANIDZE
Police once again used water cannon to break up protests /Giorgi ARJEVANIDZE
Georgia’s former prime minister has said the country’s opposition is seeking to draw the south Caucasus nation into a direct conflict with Russia.
In a rare public speech Bidzina Ivanishvili warned that protestors were acting as the agents of western powers in seeking to undermine the government.
He was speaking after a wave of violent protests in the capital Tbilisi that has led to dozens of arrests.
‘Global Party of War’
The billionaire founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party was speaking as top EU officials arrive in Tbilisi, amid opposition fears that Georgia’s candidacy to join the EU is under threat.
In a televised address Ivanishvili blamed a “Global Party of War” for seeking to replicate a standoff between Georgia and Russia, similar to that seen in 2008, when the two nations went into combat over the breakaway region of South Ossetia.
He linked the movement with events in Ukraine in 2014, when Russia took control of Crimea and in 2022 when full scale conflict broke out between Kyiv and Moscow.
Foreign Agents Bill
Protestors have taken to the streets seeking to block the latest attempt by the government to pass its planned “Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence” bill. The legislation, if approved, would compel media and non-commercial groups that receive more than a fifth of their funding from abroad to register as “foreign agents”.
Opponents claim the bill is an attempt to replicate similar legislation in Russia that would scupper Georgia’s hopes for EU accession. Scuffles again broke out in the Georgian parliament on Wednesday over the bill’s progress.
The authorities’ handling of the Tbilisi demonstrations has been attacked by Brussels. On the social media site X, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell described the use of tear gas and water cannon by police as “unacceptable.”
A poll by the National Democratic Institute at the end of last year indicated that around 80% of Georgia’s 3.7 million citizens were in favor of EU membership.
The EU’s enlargement chief speaking in Tbilisi on Wednesday stated: “The EU remains committed to support (accession) efforts in Georgia that are in line with EU aspirations of Georgian citizens.”
‘Canon fodder’
Having served as prime minister in 2012-13, Ivanishvili announced he was standing down from politics in January 2021. But critics claim he remains a key figure in the Georgian Dream executive. He has said he will continue to fight for “full restoration of the sovereignty of Georgia” out of public office.
He remains a divisive figure internationally with former Swedish Prime Minister and EU diplomat Carl Bildt suggesting his remarks show he “…leads a regime alien to the values and interests of the EU.”
But standing by his comments, Ivanishvili claimed opposition forces stand to turn the nation into “cannon fodder” unless the ruling Georgian Dream party acted.
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