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Ian Kelly, former U.S. Ambassador to Georgia, and David J. Kramer, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, in their op-ed published in The Hill newspaper, call on the U.S. to sanction Georgian ruling party Georgian Dream’s founder and current Honorary Chairman, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili and his party, to save Georgia’s democracy from authoritarianism.
“The U.S. should make clear it will use its financial leverage against Ivanishvili himself and his party should they continue on a path that would be disastrous for the Georgian people and the U.S.-Georgian relationship,” says the op-ed.
According to the Voice of America’s Georgian service, the U.S. has already drafted a sanctions package against Ivanishvili, but if and when it will be imposed is unknown.
Ian Kelly and David Kramer say that recent visa and financial sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Georgian officials and individuals fell short because they did not include Bidzina Ivanishvili, “the man responsible for Georgia’s authoritarian and pro-Russian direction.”
The op-ed summarizes Ivanishvili’s background and his track record as an informal ruler: the oligarch businessman who made his fortune in Russia, and since 2012, an unofficial ruler of the government who has sought to improve relations with Moscow. It also highlights that Russian-style legislation, including the Foreign Agents Law aimed at cracking down on civil society and the anti-LGBT law restricting the rights of sexual minorities, were passed by his party, Georgian Dream. In addition, the op-ed notes that Ivanishvili blames the previous government and its leader, ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili, for starting the war in 2008.
The authors also cite Ivanishvili’s “fire-breathing” anti-Western public speeches after his official return to politics late last year, as well as his unpopular “Global War Party” conspiracy, according to which Western leaders are funding the Georgian opposition to reinstall Saakashvili and open a “second front” in Russia’s war against Ukraine in Georgia. “Ivanishvili asserted that the ruling party would prevent such an outcome “at any cost,” a not-so-veiled threat to resort to election manipulation,” the authors note. They also warn of Ivanishvili’s promise to ban the opposition after the elections.
“Georgian Dream already controls all three branches of government. By promising to outlaw the opposition and cripple civil society and independent media, Ivanishvili and Kobakhidze are in essence describing an anti-Western totalitarian regime ruling a pro-Western population,” the op-ed says, adding: “Instead, the U.S. must tell Ivanishvili that if he rigs the October election in his favor, or carries out his threat to ban the opposition, he and his billions will face the full brunt of Treasury Deparmtment financial sanctions.”
Moreover, the authors note that the U.S. should have already sanctioned Ivanishvili months ago, “including back when he and his stooges in the government and Parliament were launching nasty rhetorical attacks against the previous U.S. ambassador and members of Congress.”
“If we convince him we will impose costly personal sanctions if he carries out his implicit threat to change the election results — and his explicit threat to ban all opposition and turn Georgia into an anti-Western dictatorship — we could deter him from doing so,” the letter reads.
The authors warn of the concerns about election rigging and the threats faced by civil society, and stress “international election observers will need to be vigilant in calling out any fraud and abuse.” They add: “The United States and its allies must stand firm against legitimizing a fraudulent election.”
Citing polls showing that Georgians are strongly pro-American, pro-European Union, pro-NATO, and pro-democracy, the authors note that “Georgia, once a vibrant democracy in a difficult neighborhood, has become a problem instead of a partner,” over which the U.S. and EU have “considerable interests and influence” that they can exercise.
“Dangling the threat of painful, targeted sanctions now could save the people of Georgia from the pro-Russian, authoritarian future the oligarch has promised them,” the op-ed concludes.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claims that Moscow is ready to “help” Georgia, Abkhazia, and Tskhinvali “normalize relations” if they are “interested.” He also hailed the Georgian government for “simply being honest about the past,” referring to GD patron Bidzina Ivanishvili’s recent remarks about apologizing to Ossetians for the 2008 war.
Tbilisi Mayor and Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Kakha Kaladze, says that authorities in Georgia positively assess Lavrov’s statement. “The fact that Russia welcomes and supports reconciliation is certainly positive. However, it would also be good if Russia took concrete steps. For instance, we could start developing an action plan for the withdrawal of Russian forces from the occupied territories of Georgia,” Kaladze said in response to Lavrov’s statement.
In its statement, the de facto foreign ministry of occupied Abkhazia took note of Kaladze’s remarks, suggesting authorities in Tbilisi refrain from political speculations on the issues of the delusional “territorial integrity” topic during the election rally, and instead, focus on normalizing relations with Russia. “Therefore, instead of speculating on false stereotypes about the “territorial integrity of Georgia” and other mythical terms during the election campaign, Georgian politicians should start by establishing diplomatic relations with Russia,” reads the statement of the so-called foreign ministry of Abkhazia.
Minister of Education and Science Giorgi Amilakhvari resigned a month before the October vote, announcing his plans to return to the private sector after four years in the ruling party team. “I asked the Prime Minister and the leaders of our team to allow me to return to the private sector after four years of relentless work and continue to support our team from there – so we made this decision together for me to leave the post of Minister,” Amilakhvari said.
On September 27, Georgia marked 31 years since the fall of Sokhumi and the loss of control over the Abkhazia region, triggering the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Georgians from the region, which was later assessed as an ethnic cleansing by international organizations. The anniversary date comes amid the GD government’s campaign of “peace” and accusations against the opposition parties, which the GD claims are planning to open the “second front” with the support of civil society and “foreign [Western] patrons.”
On September 27, the 31st anniversary of the fall of Sokhumi, the documentary “Forgotten Victims: Before Bucha was Abkhazia” was screened at the French National Assembly. The documentary features first-hand accounts of Russia’s heinous crimes in Abkhazia in 1993, drawing clear parallels to its recent actions in Ukraine. President Salome Zurabishvili and France’s Minister Delegate for Europe, Benjamin Haddad, attended the screening of the movie.
On September 22-26, the Georgian delegation headed by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze participated in the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Overall, the UNGA, which has traditionally served as an important platform for Georgian delegations to advocate a policy of non-recognition among world leaders, this year demonstrated a vivid failure to engage with Western leaders and there is a good chance it will be remembered for its silence on the Russian occupation. Here you can find key takeaways from this diplomatic drama.
On September 27, President Salome Zurabishvili signed the Amnesty Law initiated by the ruling Georgian Dream party, saying that while amnesty is a humane act, passing such a law just before elections is “indirect voter bribery.” “Amnesty is essentially a humanitarian act, and it is generally appropriate to grant it after the elections or well before the elections,” reads the press release of the President’s Administration, further noting that “the President took into account the fact that many convicts and their families are waiting for amnesty and signed the “Amnesty Law.”
Central Election Commission (CEC) announced that the October elections will be held outside Georgia in 42 countries in 60 electoral precincts. According to the CEC, the decision was made based on the official data on the number of registered voters abroad provided by the Foreign Ministry, despite strong pressure from opposition parties and CSOs to open more electoral precincts. The CEC claims that in 2024 more electoral precincts will be opened abroad than in the 2020 parliamentary elections.
