Georgia, TBILISI (AP) Following legislative elections that its opponents claim were rigged, Georgia’s pro-Moscow leadership chose to halt talks for the small former Soviet republic to join the European Union, causing political unrest once more.
The tiny but historic Caucasus nation, which sits at the intersection of Slavic, Turkish, and Persian civilizations, has recently had to negotiate a geopolitical stalemate between the democratic, affluent West and Russia, led by strongman President Vladimir Putin.
Here are some reasons why Georgia’s future is important on a national and worldwide scale.
What’s taking place in Georgia?
The ruling Georgian Dreamparty, founded by enigmatic billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, who amassed his wealth in Russia, won the country’s legislative elections on October 26.
The majority of Georgians, according to several opinion polls, want their nation to join the European Union, and those who support this move have demonstrated in large numbers against the government’s decision to halt the process.
After four nights of protests in the capital, Tbilisi, where tens of thousands of people gathered outside parliament—a significant turnout for a nation of 3.7 million people—more than 200 individuals have been arrested.
President Salome Zourabichvili, who has a primarily ceremonial role, has voiced her opposition to what she describes as the ruling party’s crackdown on free expression, even if Georgian Dream controls the parliament. She claims that numerous demonstrators who were arrested suffered facial and head injuries.
Handling the stalemate between the West and Russia
Others draw comparisons between the current demonstrations in Georgia and those that took place earlier this century in Ukraine, another former Soviet state, as Kyiv attempted to strengthen its ties with the West.
After the European Parliament voted a resolution denouncing the October 26 election as neither free nor fair, the Georgian government decided to halt the EU membership process.
According to Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesperson, Moscow compares the current events in Georgia to the turmoil that shook Ukraine in 2013 and 2014, when a pro-Russian president chose not to sign an association agreement with the EU and subsequently left the country due to the political turmoil that followed.
Putin and Russia view Georgia’s and Ukraine’s attempts to join NATO as going too far for Western encroachment into the former Soviet and Russian sphere of influence.
Georgia, which shares a border with NATO member Turkey, is not adjacent to any EU nation, although it does have a lengthy border with Russia.
Georgia’s failed attempt to retake its breakaway territory of South Ossetia led to a brief war with Russia in August 2008. Moscow established military installations in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two breakaway provinces, after recognizing their independence.
The US and EU attempt to put further pressure on the administration of Georgia.
The U.S. State Department denounced the decision to cease Georgia’s EU admission ambitions and declared on Saturday that it will suspend its strategic cooperation with the country.
Georgia was given candidate status by the EU in December, subject to meeting the bloc’s strict admission standards.
But after the Georgian parliament passed a foreign influence law that was generally viewed as a blow to democratic liberties, the EU placed Georgia’s admission on hold and stopped providing financial support in the spring.
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