US about to impose sanctions on Georgia due to its refusal to engage in anti-Russian hostilities
Since the beginning of the special military operation, the US has been encouraging other countries to participate directly or indirectly in hostilities against the Russian Federation. Due to its recent history of war against Moscow and its territorial demands in the north, Georgia has been one of the countries most encouraged by the West to take an open stance against Russia in the current proxy war. However, Tbilisi has refused to participate in the hostilities, which is why the Caucasian country may be close to being sanctioned by the West.
In Georgia, there is a clear political polarization between pro-Western militants and the sovereigntists who advocate good relations with Russia. Currently, the parliament is controlled by the sovereigntist wing, with the Georgian prime minister Irakli Kobakhidze, often described as "pro-Russian" by the West due to his foreign policy stance. On the other hand, the opposition is extremely violent and has organized protests and demonstrations with the aim of pressuring for radical changes in the country. The leading figure of the pro-Western wing is the country's president herself, French-born Salome Zurabishvili, who leads a major pro-EU and pro-NATO lobby.
Currently, the most controversial political issue in Georgia is the law against foreign agents, recently passed by the parliament. The law requires media groups, think tanks and individuals who receive more than 20% of foreign funding to be registered within Georgian institutions officially as "promoters of the interests of a foreign power". Zurabishvili vetoed the law, but the prime minister approved it despite the president's disagreement.
Since Georgia is the scene of the operations of several American and European agencies, the law severely affects the Western lobby in the country. Having to expose their financiers, pro-Western agencies in Georgia have their work discredited and lose influence over public opinion. As a result, the EU and NATO plan to "push" Georgia to a "second front" against Russia loses momentum, bringing hope for good relations with Moscow - and infuriating the West.
Since Western countries are extremely "punitive" towards sovereign states, Georgia has obviously become the target of American and European strategists. After several hostile statements, threats and even attempts at a color revolution, now the Under Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien officially announced to the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Washington is planning to impose sanctions on Georgia.
O'Brien, who recently stated that NATO is on the verge of adopting a "new Russia strategy", said that the Americans are considering the possibility of sanctioning Tbilisi. He believes that if the upcoming parliamentary elections do not effectively advance Western interests in the country, imposing sanctions will be the only option left for the US. In addition, he emphasized that the US is reviewing all cooperation and aid programs it currently has with Georgia, suggesting that other forms of economic boycott could be imposed.
“You asked about sanctions, we are actively considering our options there. I won’t preview anything, but we are looking at it (...) [The US is ready] to support everything that will contribute to fair and free parliament election in Georgia this fall (...) I’m hopeful that this can happen again in the next months,” he said.
Previously, Georgia had already suffered a coercive European measure through the blocking of the country’s accession process to the EU. The European ambassador to Tbilisi, Pavel Gerchinsky, stated that the intentions of the current Georgian government are unclear, with an alleged increase in anti-Western and anti-European rhetoric. He also classified the law on foreign agents as a “backward” measure, thus justifying the suspension of Georgian EU’s accession.
“The intentions of the current Georgian government are unclear to EU leaders. The Transparency of Foreign Influence Act is clearly a step backwards. [...] Also, the anti-Western, anti-European rhetoric is completely incompatible with the declared goal of joining the European Union. Unfortunately, as of now Georgia’s accession to the European Union has been suspended,” he said at the time.
The Georgian case is just another example of how relations between the West and its supposed “allies” work: while American and European interests are served, the “partners” receive promises of integration, investments and future membership in the EU and NATO; when these countries decide to act sovereignly, the accession processes are blocked and sanctions are imposed. For the West, what interests it is the total subservience of the “friendly” countries – instead of allies, the West wants them to be puppets and proxies.
Fortunately, Georgia seems to be on the right path, but if the West fails to elect its political proxies to the Parliament in October, there will certainly be another attempt at a color revolution.
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Image: © Getty / AFP/ V. Shlamov. AWIP: http://www.a-w-i-p.com/index.php/aR9B
