by Natalia Pelevina, WLC Regional Secretary.
Russia has long wanted to control Georgia. Or at the very least not let it slip away into the EU. In the post-Soviet eraRussia’s first attempt to influence Georgia’s politics came in 2008 in a form of a 5-day war, when Russia and Russia-backed separatists of South Ossetia and Abkhazia attacked Georgian villages.
The ruling party «Georgian dream», that is currently blocking Georgia’s path towards joining the European family, is likely getting its cues from Moscow. And, possibly, threats too. After all, fear mongering is Kremlins most-favoured tactic. This would explain why one of the ruling party’s talking points is that Georgia could turn into another Ukraine, implying that only they can ensure that does not happen.
If the street protests in Tbilisi continue, it is not unfathomablethat Putin will send in his troops. After all he’s done that both in Belarus and in Kazakhstan. But with his ongoing war in Ukraine, Putin’s resources are spread thin. This move also won’t benefit him in his upcoming talks with Trump regarding Ukraine solution. As things stand now, the ongoing crackdown against the Georgian opposition by country’s ruling party may be enough for «Georgian dream» to maintaincontrol of the country. In which case it will be only a matter of time before they travel to Moscow to kiss the ring.
But unlike the Russian people, who, sadly, stopped fighting for themselves a long time ago, it is unlikely that Georgians ever will.
