Protesters gathered in Georgia’s capital for the fourth night in a row this Sunday (1st) to protest the government’s decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union.
Outside the capital, Georgian news agency Interpress said protesters blocked an access road to the country’s main commercial port in the Black Sea city of Poti.
Media in the former Soviet republic reported protests in at least eight cities and towns.
The country of 3.7 million people has seen months of growing tension between opponents and the ruling Georgian Dream party, which is accused of pursuing increasingly authoritarian, anti-Western and pro-Russian policies.
The crisis deepened on November 28, when the government announced a freeze on negotiations with the EU for four years.
Since then, thousands of pro-Europe protesters have taken to the streets of different cities and confronted the police, who have dispersed the protests with tear gas and water cannons.
The European Union and the United States are alarmed by what they see as Georgia’s shift away from a pro-Western path and return to Russia’s orbit.
The Georgian Dream party, which is pro-Russia and governs the country, says it is acting to defend the country’s sovereignty against external interference.
“Dark abyss”
Russia is closely following developments. Security official Dmitry Medvedev, former Russian president, said an attempted revolution was taking place in the country and wrote on Telegram that Georgia was “moving quickly along the Ukrainian path, towards the dark abyss”. Normally, this kind of thing ends very badly,” he said.
The Kremlin itself has yet to comment on the latest developments in Georgia, but it has long accused the United States and European allies of fomenting revolutions in post-Soviet countries that Moscow still considers part of its sphere of influence.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze rejected criticism from the United States, which condemned the use of “excessive force” against protesters.
“Despite the heaviest systematic violence carried out by violent groups and their foreign instructors, the police acted at a higher standard than the Americans and Europeans and successfully protected the state from another attempt to violate the constitutional order,” he told reporters .
Kobakhidze also ignored Washington’s announcement on Saturday that it was suspending a strategic partnership with Georgia. He said it was a “temporary event,” and that Georgia will talk to President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration when the billionaire takes office in January.
Opposition to the ruling party
Deepening the country’s constitutional crisis, ousted President Salome Zourabichvili — a critic of the government and strong supporter of Georgia’s membership of the European Union — said on Saturday (30) that she will refuse to step down when her term ends at the end of this month.
Zourabichvili said he would remain in office because the new parliament – chosen in October in elections that the opposition said were rigged – was illegitimate and did not have the authority to name his successor.
The prime minister said he understands the president’s “emotional state”. “But of course on December 29th she will have to leave her residence and hand over this building to a legitimately elected president,” he said.
Hundreds of diplomats and civil servants signed open letters protesting the suspension of negotiations with the European Union.
Georgia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that foreign countries are trying to “interfere in the functioning of the institutions of a sovereign state” and that this is unacceptable.
Uncertain future
For most of the period since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Georgia has leaned heavily toward the West and tried to loosen the influence of Russia, to which it lost a brief war in 2008. NATO has promised the country’s eventual accession to alliance, and last year Georgia became an official candidate for EU membership.
Critics of Georgia and European governments allege that the ruling Georgian Dream party intends to abandon this pro-European path. The party denies the accusations.
In June, Georgia enacted a law that requires NGOs to register as “foreign agents” if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. In September, Parliament passed a law restricting LGBT rights.
The new head of European Union foreign policy, Kaja Kallas, who took office this Sunday (1st), expressed solidarity with the protesters. “We support the Georgian people and their choice for a European future,” she posted on X.
“We condemn the violence against protesters and regret the ruling party’s signs of not following Georgia’s path to the EU and the country’s democratic backsliding. This will have direct consequences on the EU side.”
This content was originally published in Protests in Georgia intensify despite international criticism on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
