Work is continuing in Azerbaijan on the reconstruction and expansion of major electricity grid infrastructure as part of efforts to integrate large-scale renewable energy projects into the national energy system.
Day: June 4, 2026
France was forced to recall two intelligence officers stationed in Tbilisi in May after Georgian authorities uncovered the recruitment of a former associate of Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, according to a report published by French outlet Intelligence Online on June 3.
The report concerns Giorgi Udzilauri, a senior official at the Finance Ministry’s Investigative Service and former head of the public relations service of Ivanishvili’s Cartu Group, who was detained on May 5 on allegations of spying for what the SSSG described as “one of the big European countries,” without identifying it. Later, Mamuka Mdinaradze, the newly appointed State Minister for Coordination of Law Enforcement Bodies, hinted that the country in question could be France.
Intelligence Online reported that the French intelligence service DGSE (Directorate-General for External Security) had recruited Udzilauri in recent months, describing the operation as a “successful manoeuvre” that was ultimately uncovered by Georgian counterintelligence.
The outlet said that “just four days after the announcement of Udzilauri’s arrest, the Georgian government suddenly ordered Western countries to withdraw their spies operating in the country, threatening to reveal the identities of their agents in the event of refusal.” According to the publication, the DGSE complied with the demand, recalling two officers to Paris who were posted at the French Embassy in Tbilisi.
The outlet said it contacted the DGSE, which declined to comment on the matter, stating only that none of its officers had been declared persona non grata by the Georgian authorities. It added that neither the SSSG nor the Georgian Embassy in Paris responded to its requests for comment before publication.
According to Intelligence Online, the latest developments prompted extensive discussions between the DGSE and the SSSG. “Nicolas Lerner, director of the French service, wished for all necessary clarifications to be provided so that the bilateral dialogue, particularly important in his view with the agencies of this country, could continue on the basis discussed and agreed upon between the services,” the publication reported.
Intelligence Online suggested that Georgia’s decision not to publicly identify France may reflect “Paris’ efforts to maintain dialogue with Tbilisi” despite growing strains in bilateral relations following Georgia’s disputed 2024 parliamentary elections. The outlet described the case as “a serious blow” for French intelligence, noting that Paris considers Georgia “a prime outpost” for monitoring developments in Russia. It added that the DGSE station in Tbilisi, which closed in the late 1990s and reopened in 2003, has gained renewed importance since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Udzilauri remains in pretrial detention and denies any wrongdoing. His lawyer, Beka Guledani, told RFE/RL’s Georgian Service on June 3 that Udzilauri believes the charges are politically motivated, connected to his involvement in pro-European protests against the Georgian Dream government.
“He acknowledges that, in parallel with his work at the investigative service, he attended pro-European student protest rallies on Rustaveli twice,” Guledani told RFE/RL, adding that Udzilauri had been “warned” that his communications and movements were under surveillance but nevertheless continued meetingს and communications freely.
Guledani also said that Udzilauri opposes what he called “the current government’s isolationist policy, Georgian diplomacy’s cowardly attitude towards Russia, and the justification of everything by the ‘threat of war.’”
Udzilauri’s case is one of four espionage investigations announced by the SSSG since April. While authorities have generally withheld the identities of the countries allegedly involved, the other suspects include Tamaz Goloev, allegedly linked to Russia; Gulbaat Rtskhiladze, reportedly accused of spying for Russia and Iran; and journalist Irakli Chikhladze, who Mamuka Mdinaradze implied recently was accused of “representing the resident of the so-called special service of the same country” involved in another espionage-related arrest weeks earlier, possibly referring to Udzilauri.
Speaking about that arrest, Mdinaradze said on June 1: “This was indeed followed by quite positive communication between the relevant services; however, we must emphasize that two days ago, the State Security Service detained only those individuals who, despite the warning, did not cease certain activities in the aforementioned direction even after the previous arrests.”
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Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze rejected allegations that Georgia’s government is “pro-Iranian” and disputed remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggesting that Georgian officials had asked Washington what would be required to improve bilateral relations.
The remarks came a day after a U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing in which Rep. Joe Wilson, a vocal critic of the ruling Georgian Dream party, asked Rubio about the plans regarding Georgia, referring to the Georgian Dream government as a “pro-Iranian regime” that helped Tehran evade sanctions, as “illegitimate,” and as supported by the Chinese Communist Party.
Responding, Rubio told Rep. Wilson that he was “right” and everything he outlined was “preexisting concerns.” The State Secretary also noted that Tbilisi asked “what will it take to have a better relationship” with the U.S., and expressed hope for a change in “trajectory not just of [U.S.] relationship with Georgia, but of their behavior.”
Responding to journalists’ questions after the opening of the 16th Tbilisi Regional Forum on Sustainable Development on June 4, Kobakhidze disputed that Georgian officials had asked Washington what would be required to improve relations. “We have never asked such a question. Our message is what we have already stated publicly,” he said, noting that “when someone speaks, they may say things through their own interpretation.”
“I can tell you with full responsibility that neither I nor any of my colleagues have ever asked such a question. When someone is speaking, they may say something one way or another, but I am telling you what the facts are,” Kobakhidze noted, adding: “What we said was that we are ready to discuss every detail related to the restoration of the strategic partnership.”
Referring to Georgia’s relations with China and Iran, Kobakhidze said the U.S. administration itself was seeking deeper engagement with major powers.
“The U.S. administration itself speaks that it is doing everything to deepen relations with China; the U.S. administration itself says that it wants to deepen relations with Russia,” he said.
He also dismissed allegations that Georgia maintains a pro-Iranian orientation, warning “not to go down to the level” of Rep. Wilson and also Eka Gigauri, executive director of Transparency International – Georgia, a Georgian corruption watchdog.
“Georgia and Iran? Come on, you’re not Joe Wilson, are you?” he asked journalists.
Kobakhidze also rejected suggestions that Rubio had endorsed Wilson’s characterization of the Georgian government.
“What exactly did he [Rubio] agree with, that this is a pro-Iranian government? That is Joe Wilson’s level. He did not agree with that,” he said. He also dismissed the allegations of Georgia helping Iran evade sanctions, noting that Georgian exports to Iran accounted for 0.5% of total exports and imports from Iran accounted for 1.5% of total imports.
Kobakhidze once again reiterated long-standing claims that relations between Tbilisi and Washington had deteriorated under the previous U.S. administration and argued that Georgia had resisted external pressure.
“Georgia is not a schoolchild who can be given remedial lessons and told to correct its behavior,” he said. “Georgia is a dignified, sovereign state, and we made that position absolutely clear everywhere.”
“The previous administration was demanding something extremely serious from us, and this was followed by pressure, coercion, blackmail, and countless other hardships directed against the Georgian people and the Georgian state. What was damaged through injustice can only be repaired through a just approach,” Kobakhidze further added.
The GD prime minister said he remained optimistic that ties with Washington could improve.
“We remain optimistic that the process will conclude with the restoration of the strategic partnership,” he said.
The United States, under the Joe Biden administration, suspended its strategic partnership with Georgia, a traditional ally, in November 2024 during the Tbilisi protests and later in the same year imposed sanctions on the ruling party’s billionaire founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili. The Donald Trump administration has yet to reverse those decisions.
The remarks come amid continued uncertainty, but also intensifying contacts, in Tbilisi–Washington relations as Georgian Dream officials continue to state their willingness for a “reset.” Recent months have seen increased contacts between the two sides, including a phone call between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, as well as visits to Tbilisi by senior U.S. officials.
Following a late-May visit to Tbilisi, a U.S. delegation said it had discussed a path toward improving bilateral relations with Georgian Dream officials and stressed the importance of a stable domestic political environment that facilitates opposition engagement for a sustainable strategic partnership between the two countries.
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- 30/03/2026 – Rubio, Kobakhidze Discuss ‘Areas of Mutual Interest’ in Phone Call