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4 weeks ago | 
wilsoncenter.org | Izabella Tabarovsky |Maxim Trudolyubov |Beka Chedia
Russia’s recruitment of soldiers to fight in its war in Ukraine has disproportionately drawn from the country’s Indigenous peoples. Individuals from these communities—most notably Buryats, Tuvans, Kalmyks, as well as members of small-numbered nations—have been recruited at above-average rates and experienced higher-than-average combat death rates.
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Jan 13, 2025 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:The Georgian parliament inaugurated a new president, Mikheil Kavelashvili, on December 29 despite continuing protests calling for repeat parliamentary elections and the continuation of EU rapprochement. Western leaders have imposed sanctions on key Georgian officials, including informal leader and billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, for undermining democracy. Deteriorating Western relations have caused a sharp decline in foreign investment and halted major economic projects.
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Dec 20, 2024 | 
cepa.org | Alison Mutler |Irina Arabidze |Beka Chedia |Jack Dean
Romania avoided a bullet, but the gunman is still at large. That’s how some analysts describe Romania’s political situation after, in less than a month, it went from a reliable and committed NATO and European Union (EU) member to a southeast European country mired in political turmoil and uncertainty. It’s a grim picture, and there’s no immediate fix in sight.
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Dec 10, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s November 28 announcement about suspending EU integration discussions has caused a pre-revolutionary situation to develop in Georgia, with protests spreading across the country. The government has stepped up repression against the Georgian people in response to the demonstrations.
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Nov 20, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced that a new president will be elected in early January. This will be the first time the Georgian president is elected by an electoral college, half of which is made up of parliament. This change is significant as the departure of President Salome Zourabichvili, a key counter to Georgian Dream, may leave the opposition without an ally, bolstering the ruling party’s leverage in the ongoing political crisis.
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Oct 28, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party announced its victory in Georgia’s parliamentary elections on October 26, sparking outrage from the opposition due to suspected election fraud. The election results signify an opportunity for Tbilisi to turn toward Moscow, especially as many report likely election interference by Russia in an attempt to assert control over Georgia.
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Oct 15, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:The European Parliament adopted a resolution on October 9, calling on the EU executive body to freeze aid to the Georgian government and impose sanctions against those responsible for Georgia’s democratic backsliding. The ruling Georgian Dream party’s campaigns promoting anti-European propaganda as well as spreading anti-EU narratives and conspiracy theories highlight that it has no desire for rapprochement with the European Union.
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Sep 18, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:Bidzina Ivanishvili, the informal leader of Georgia, made a recent statement promising an apology to the separatist state of South Ossetia for the war in 2008, placing the blame for Russia’s war on Georgia itself. The Georgian opposition and general public assessed Ivanishvili’s statements as a betrayal. They fear that if Ivanishvili follows through on these promises, there may be little legal basis for restoring Georgia’s territorial integrity.
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Sep 16, 2024 | 
cepa.org | Beka Chedia
The ruling party has announced that it will ban all major opposition parties if it wins the parliamentary elections scheduled for October 26. Georgian Dream plans to turn the country into a one-party system and says it is confident of a convincing victory in the vote. On September 8, the billionaire founder of Georgian Dream and now the country’s unofficial leader, Bidizina Ivanishvili, identified the opposition as one of the main threats to security and sovereignty at a pre-election rally.
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Sep 5, 2024 | 
jamestown.org | Beka Chedia
Executive Summary:The ruling Georgian Dream has proposed that if it wins the upcoming elections, it would declare Orthodox Christianity as the state religion in Georgia. The move looks to gain the support of the Georgian Orthodox Church, one of the most influential institutions in the country. The sudden proposal, however, may become a pretext for deepening the Georgian Patriarchate’s mistrust of the ruling elite, as the church has expressed skepticism over the prospective policy.
