Opinion: 'If this continues, West really will want to change government in Georgia'
Western response to Georgian Dream
Political activist David Zurabishvili believes that in response to the Georgian Dream party adopting repressive laws, the West may well decide to change the government in Georgia — in other words, actually do what Georgian Dream has long accused it of doing.
David Zurabishvili:
“By adopting a law that bans receiving foreign grants without government approval, Georgian Dream is trying to fully control the NGO sector.
On top of that, they want to ban opposition parties and so on. God knows what else they’ll come up with next.
Why is the government doing this?
In my view, it’s an attempt to shut down every possible loophole that, in their minds, could lead to a revolution or a coup.
Georgian Dream’s honorary chairman, Bidzina Ivanishvili, and his inner circle genuinely believe that certain powerful Western forces are planning to overthrow them through grant funding of NGOs and opposition parties. As a result, Georgian Dream is taking countermeasures to prevent a revolution.
Of course, this conspiracy theory is the height of absurdity. But the problem is that Ivanishvili, his circle, and a significant portion of their supporters actually believe this nonsense — and act accordingly.
And that, in turn, poses a very serious problem for the entire country. But it’s also a serious problem for Georgian Dream itself and for Bidzina Ivanishvili personally.”
The truth is, no one in the US or the European Union has ever seriously considered overthrowing Ivanishvili’s government. On the contrary, the entire West has tried to persuade Ivanishvili, reason with him, and later — bring him to his senses through light pressure.
But all of this proved futile. Ivanishvili saw every attempt as part of a plot to remove him from power. The last remaining hope was the 2024 parliamentary election — but instead, after that election, Ivanishvili and Georgian Dream effectively declared the Collective West their main enemy.
What might come of all this? The West may finally decide to do what Georgian Dream has long accused it of — namely, to push for a change of government in Georgia. And they have some rather effective tools to do so. If such a decision is made, it will inevitably be followed by concrete actions — and no bans on parties or foreign grants will be able to stop it.
This threat might already have taken on a more tangible form, were it not for the political storm triggered by Donald Trump’s election. That temporarily pushed Georgia off the agenda, as the West had other priorities. But sooner or later, whatever the new world order looks like, it will reach us too.”
