Georgian Nightmare
On Authoritarian Developments in Tbilisi
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Georgia’s ruling party features the word “dream” in its name, but its policies are causing nightmares for all of the country’s pro-democratic political forces. Behind the party and the government stands oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, who has established an authoritarian regime and is driving Georgia into the arms of Russia. Relations with Ukraine have deteriorated enormously. The Georgian government is ostensibly trying not to provoke Moscow; in fact, its only goal is to secure power. The EU seems to face a dilemma: democratic standards or geopolitical interests. A clear and smart policy can achieve both, but with indecision the EU will gamble away both. This is all the more dangerous because in Georgia, as in many other countries around the world, Russia presents itself as a partner in the struggle against colonial oppression. But the Putin regime is showing its true face in Ukraine.
(Osteuropa 9-10/2022, pp. 193–200)