US threatens Georgia with isolation after attack on ex-Prime Minister Gakharia

U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller threatened Georgia with isolation amid the recent attack on the leader of the opposition For Georgia party, former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, and accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of repression.

“We strongly condemn the violence against Georgian civilians, protesters, journalists and opposition figures, including former Georgian Prime Minister Gakharia. This is yet another example of the repressive tactics of the Georgian Dream that will leave the country isolated,” Miller said in a statement on social network X.

The Georgian Interior Ministry earlier told reporters that it had launched an investigation into the attack on Gakharia. For their part, doctors at the Batumi clinic told reporters that Gakharia was brought to them with a broken nose and concussion, but the politician left the hospital of his own accord.

In late November, the State Department said the U.S. was suspending its strategic partnership with Georgia because of alleged “anti-democratic actions” of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

On December 27, the US imposed sanctions against the founder and honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream Bidzina Ivanishvili. The restrictions imply freezing Ivanishvili's assets in the U.S. and banning American citizens and companies from doing business with him.

Reprinted from https://ria.ru/