Georgia on path to Putinism, opposition leader says as ruling party threatens total ban

Georgia’s hopes of joining the European Union are hanging by a thread, the leader of the country’s largest opposition party has warned, after the government on Wednesday vowed to outlaw her faction if it wins elections later this year.
In an interview with POLITICO, Tina Bokuchava, chair of the United National Movement (UNM), called the government threat “an attempt at [the] Belarus-ization of Georgia” and an effort to “push away Georgia’s real friends and substitute them with authoritarian regimes like Russia, China and Iran.”
The governing Georgian Dream party issued a statement on Tuesday promising to dissolve the UNM if it secures enough seats in an October nationwide vote.
“Upon obtaining a constitutional majority, we will initiate a legal process that will result in the United National Movement and all its satellite or successor parties being declared unconstitutional,” the statement reads. Georgian Dream, chaired by billionaire entrepreneur Bidzina Ivanishvili, accuses its opponents of colluding with Western nations to open a “second front” against Russia during its war on Ukraine.
In a speech Wednesday evening, Ivanishvili claimed the UNM would “go against the national interests even in such a time” of regional conflict. “Protection of peace, dignity, sovereignty, Christian values ​​and bright future of the country requires constant vigilance even now.”
“The Georgian people are being given a clear choice,” Bokuchava said, “between a free, prosperous European future, or a Putin-style authoritarian government that plans to eradicate the opposition, lock everyone up that he can [and] push others out of the country, completely consolidate power, and push away the West.”
She called on the EU and the U.S. to follow through on threats to sanction Georgian Dream, and Ivanishvili personally, after having repeatedly warned that there would be consequences for those responsible for the country’s increasingly pro-Russian tilt.
Brussels froze the South Caucasus country’s application to join the bloc after the Georgian government in May passed a Moscow-style law that would brand Western-backed NGOs and media outlets as “foreign agents.”
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital, Tbilisi, to oppose the measure, which the government insisted was needed to counter the “global war party” that Ivanishvili claims was responsible for provoking Russia into its conflict with Ukraine. The authorities cracked down on demonstrators, deploying tear gas and water cannon and arresting activists.
In July, the U.S. also announced a freeze on tens of millions of dollars in aid to Georgia as a result of the increasingly tense standoff. Foreign aid is critical for industries like agriculture, winemaking and tourism, with many in rural communities dependent on the funds.
Washington has said it will impose travel and financial restrictions on the country’s leadership, but has yet to name those affected.