Bidzina Ivanishvili, who made billions in Russia in metals and telecoms in the 1990s, has spearheaded a rapid turn away from the West in the EU candidate country, publicly accusing foreign intelligence agencies of seeking to drive Georgia into war with Russia.
read more
Founder of the Georgian Dream party Bidzina Ivanishvili speaks after the announcement of exit poll results in parliamentary elections, at the Georgian Dream party headquarters in Tbilisi, Georgia October 26, 2024. Image- Reuters
The United States has imposed Friday sanctions on Georgian billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and widely regarded as the de facto leader of Georgia. The move comes amid growing concerns that Georgia, under his Georgian Dream party has shifted towards authoritarianism and pro-Russian direction in recent months.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the sanctions were imposed due to Ivanishvili’s actions, which were seen as undermining Georgia’s democratic and Euro-Atlantic aspirations in favour of the Russian Federation.
Blinken further said that Ivanishvili had engaged in actions or policies that undermined democratic processes or institutions in Georgia and internationally to benefit the Russian government.
Ivanishvili, who made billions in Russia in metals and telecoms in the 1990s, has spearheaded a rapid turn away from the West in the EU candidate country, publicly accusing foreign intelligence agencies of seeking to drive Georgia into war with Russia.
The sanctions mark the culmination of years of souring relations between the West and Georgia, which had been seen as among the most democratic, pro-Western countries of the former Soviet Union.
Georgian Dream, which is dominated by Ivanishvili, says it is committed to a democratic and pro-Western Georgia while also maintaining pragmatic ties with neighbouring Russia. But last month it froze EU talks until 2028, abruptly halting a longstanding national goal written into its constitution.
The freeze kick-started a month of protests and a crackdown that has seen more than 400 people, including high-profile opposition politicians, detained.
The U.S. on Dec. 18 sanctioned several senior Georgian interior ministry officials who it accused of comp