Georgia’s PM accuses president of treason for opposing ‘foreign agents’ law

Georgia’s prime minister has accused the pro-West president of treason for opposing his controversial “foreign agents” law, which looks set to be forced through on Tuesday.

The law would force Western-financed NGOs to register with a government unit, in what critics and the US have denounced as an example of Kremlin-inspired authoritarianism that would crush civil society.

Relations between prime minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s ruling Georgian Dream party and Salome Zurabishvili, the president, have collapsed over the plans and sparked mass protests.

Speaking at an Independence Day ceremony in central Tbilisi on Sunday, Mr Kobakhidze took aim at Ms Zurabishvili, who was seated a few feet away, as he touted Georgia’s neutrality in the war between Russia and Ukraine.

“The unity of the people and the government has allowed us over the past two years to maintain peace in the country despite existential threats and various betrayals, including the betrayal of the president,” Mr Kobakhidze said.

The law has triggered some of the biggest protests in Georgia since it gained independence from the Soviet Union more than 30 years ago, while police have responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Ms Zurabishvili, born in France, has been hailed as a hero by demonstrators who see her as critical to their opposition.

On Sunday she used her speech at the Independence Day military event to denounce the Georgian Dream government as a “Soviet relic”.

“The Soviet relic is the subordination of state interests to the interests of the leader and the party. Our mentality and memory must be liberated from the Soviet relic,” she said.

On Monday, the Georgian Dream-dominated parliament will begin a special session to consider Ms Zurabishvili’s veto of the foreign agents law.

They are only obliged to consider her objections, meaning the law is likely to pass on Tuesday and spark more protests.

Tom de Waal, senior fellow at the Carnegie Europe think tank, said that Georgia was at a “dangerous” moment.

“Georgia is in crisis. For once, the cliche that a country is at a turning point is justified,” he said.

Georgia fought a war against Russia in 2008 but it has avoided backing Ukraine since the Kremlin’s invasion. Instead, it has strengthened links with Moscow and pushed the foreign agents law, infuriating Western officials.

EU officials have said that if the law is passed Georgia’s candidate status for the bloc will be withdrawn. The US has already imposed travel and financial sanctions on key Georgian government officials.

The Georgia Dream party, which is bankrolled by a reclusive billionaire with links to the Kremlin, came to power in 2012. It has been accused of backsliding on human rights and expanding its grip over state institutions and security forces.