Day: July 25, 2025
UK regrets Georgian Dream’s actions
The British Embassy in Georgia has published a statement on sanctions against 21 Russian military intelligence agents and four Russian organizations “in response to Russia’s hostile actions.”
The statement also mentions a cyberattack carried out by Russian military intelligence against Georgia in 2019.
The Embassy reaffirms its strong support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and expresses regret over the ruling Georgian Dream party’s drift away from Euro-Atlantic cooperation.
The text of the statement:
“In concert with the EU, NATO and a large coalition of states, the UK has called out Russia’s irresponsible, destructive and destabilising hybrid activity targeting the UK, Ukraine, NATO allies and partners across the world. In response to Russia’s persistent hostile activity, the UK has sanctioned 4 entities and 21 operatives of Russian military intelligence for irresponsible and destructive hybrid activity targeting the UK, Ukraine, and the wider world.
This includes one of the units of the GRU – Russian military intelligence agency – which, in 2022, conducted online reconnaissance to help target missile strikes against Mariupol – including the strike that destroyed the Mariupol Theatre where hundreds of civilians, including children, were murdered.
We have also sanctioned three leaders of Russia’s ‘Africa Initiative’, a Foreign Information Manipulation and Influence (FIMI) outlet established and funded by Russia, employing Russian intelligence officers to conduct information operations in West Africa. Africa Initiative attempted to undermine lifesaving global health initiatives in the region by pushing baseless conspiracy theories to further the Kremlin’s political agenda.
The activity exposed is another demonstration of how hybrid activity – including through cyberspace and disinformation – are a tool in Russia’s ongoing campaign to destabilise Europe, and in Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.
In October 2019, Georgia was also the subject of a damaging cyber-attack by the Russian military intelligence. In February 2020, the UK Government and its partners exposed these cyber-attacks against Georgia as part of Russia’s long-running campaign of hostile and destabilising activity. We have been clear that the GRU conducted these cyber-attacks in an attempt to undermine Georgia’s sovereignty, to sow discord and disrupt the lives of ordinary Georgian people.
The UK remains unwavering in its support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The UK and Georgia worked together to build cyber resilience and to publicly attribute that attack, unfortunately Georgian Dream has moved away from Euro-Atlantic co-operation, but the threat from Russia remains, including in the cyber sphere.”
News in Georgia
Categories
Moscow Calling – July 25
Chinese scientists unveil record-breaking crystal for powerful lasers
Researchers at the Hefei Institute of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have manufactured the world’s largest barium gallium selenide (BGSe) crystal, TASS reports, citing the South China Morning Post newspaper. The sample’s diameter reached 60 mm, which, according to Prof. Wu Haixin, makes it a world record. The crystal can withstand laser power as intense as 550 megawatts per square centimeter, opening up prospects for its use in laser weapons capable of destroying satellites. In addition, it converts infrared radiation, which is important for medicine and missile tracking (TASS).
Intended effect:
The news highlights China’s technological superiority and hints at the possible militarization of scientific achievements.
Matvienko: Falsifications about “interference” have undermined the U.S. reputation
Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko said that the exposure of allegations of Russian interference in the U.S. elections was a blow to the American special services. According to her, Western sanctions have proved useless, and threatening new ones is pointless. She emphasized Russia’s readiness for dialogue with the U.S., especially between the special services, and called the third meeting on negotiations with Ukraine positive. Matvienko also denied accusations of child abduction and accused Kyiv of insincerity. She considered a meeting between Putin and Zelenskყy premature, as there was “no subject for discussion” (TASS).
Intended effect:
The statements are intended to strengthen internal confidence in Russia’s righteousness and show the weakness of the West. The emphasis on “exposing” fakes undermines trust in the U.S. and justifies Moscow’s aggressive foreign policy.
Nosovich: The West is losing control over its proxies in Ukraine and Lithuania
Russian political commentator Alexander Nosovich claims that statements by released Belarusian opposition figure Sergei Tikhanovsky, who has moved to Vilnius, have brought Lithuania to the brink of a political crisis. In his article on RIA Novosti, Nosovich writes that Tikhanovsky allegedly proposed the creation of “Belarusian enclaves” abroad, hinting that Vilnius is the historical capital of Belarus. Against this backdrop, the author compares the situation to the conflict between Zelenskyy and Ukraine’s anti-corruption system, hinting that the West has lost control in both cases. He also claims that in both cases the “created” forces are waging a war “to the last Belarusian and Ukrainian.”
Intended effect:
The article discredits pro-Western forces in Ukraine and Belarus, portraying them as uncontrollable and dangerous. At the same time, it reinforces anti-Western sentiments by accusing Europe of undermining its own security by fighting Russia.
Diaspora as a lever: Kremlin’s hidden tactics against Baku
The author of the article “A soft noose for Mr. Aliyev,” published by Voennoye Obozrenie, notes that the topic of the Azerbaijani diaspora is often associated with organized crime and used as a tool of influence. The author cites examples of ordinary migrants as informal representatives of the diaspora, emphasizing that the real leaders of the diaspora have ties to Baku and can receive instructions from their home country. It is these leaders who become the target of Russian policy, but the author blames not the Russian leadership, but President Ilham Aliyev, whose words and actions force Moscow to react. According to the author, the “soft noose” for Aliyev means creating conditions in which Russia can quietly yet effectively increase pressure on Azerbaijani diaspora groups and businesses within its jurisdiction, using them as leverage over Baku. This is not open confrontation, but controlled restraint, forcing Azerbaijan to take Moscow’s interests into account without direct threats. The author also criticizes illusions about the brotherhood of post-Soviet peoples, arguing that many former Soviet states pursue their own national interests and view Russia merely as a source of resources (topwar.ru).
Expected effect:
The article reinforces the critical perception of the Azerbaijani diaspora as a potentially harmful asset controlled by Baku, which justifies Russia’s repressive measures. It also undermines the idea of post-Soviet solidarity, shaping the reader’s understanding of the pragmatic, rather than fraternal, politics of neighboring countries.
Transparency International/TI-Georgia condemned what it called an “inappropriately lenient” punishment for the man who attacked its regional office manager, Zviad Koridze, in Batumi in January, while noting that the other alleged perpetrators were not charged and thus went unpunished.
“This verdict is yet another example of how the regime protects its own violent supporters,” TI-Georgia, the country’s leading corruption watchdog, said on July 25, as it received the June 24 ruling by Batumi City Court Judge Viktor Metreveli, who found Gocha Samkharadze guilty of violence and fined him GEL 3,000 (about USD 1,100).
The others allegedly involved in the attack were Georgian Dream MP Dimitri Samkharadze and former Adjara Supreme Council GD faction chair Giorgi Manvelidze, who, according to TI-Georgia, were not charged at all and remain unpunished.
Zviad Koridze, a TI member, journalist, and civic activist, was verbally and physically assaulted on January 15 in the lobby of the Sheraton Hotel in Georgia’s coastal city of Batumi. He was hospitalized with an eye injury. Hours later, opposition For Georgia party leader Giorgi Gakharia, a former prime minister under the Georgian Dream, was also attacked by a group at the same venue and hospitalized with a broken nose and concussion.
TI-Georgia says the prosecutor “severely downplayed” and “distorted” the violence against Koridze by omitting key details from the case, including that he was sworn at and had a flower pot full of soil thrown at him.
“The prosecutor’s office deliberately concealed the full scope of the crime and the roles of other participants,” the watchdog said.
Koridze was in Batumi to observe a court hearing of journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli, director and founder of the Batumelebi and Netgazeti outlets.
“This case is symbolic because the Batumi incident involving Zviad Koride is closely connected to the trial of Mzia Amaghlobeli. While journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli faces a minimum 4-year prison sentence for slapping a police officer, only one participant in the group assault on Koridze has been punished, and with an inappropriately lenient sentence,” TI-Georgia said.
“This authoritarian regime not only intensifies pressure on those who oppose inequality and injustice but also shields those who uphold the regime through acts of violence,” the group added.
Concerns over lenient sentences for attackers of GD critics arise amid harsh treatment of protesters by courts and prosecutors. Several protesters have received multi-year jail sentences in protest-related cases, while courts have imposed administrative detention for offenses such as alleged verbal insults toward officials. On July 25, a Batumi court sent activist Levan Khorava to 20 days in detention for allegedly swearing at an Interior Ministry representative.
In a separate case on February 21, two men attacked protesters in Tbilisi. One, caught on camera holding a sharp object that looked like a machete, was fined GEL 500 (about USD 184), while the other received a verbal warning.
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