US sanctions Bidzina Ivanishvi, founder of Georgia’s ruling party
Al Jazeera
Sanctions come amid mass protests against the Georgian government’s decision to pause EU accession efforts.
The United States has sanctioned Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s former prime minister and founder of the governing Georgian Dream party, amid protests against a pause in European Union accession efforts.
In a statement on Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Ivanishvili and his party had undermined democratic institutions and “derailed Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic future” to the benefit of Russia.
“Ivanishvili and Georgian Dream’s actions have eroded democratic institutions, enabled human rights abuses, and curbed the exercise of fundamental freedoms in Georgia,” Blinken said.
Georgian Dream and Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced last month that they would suspend talks on Georgia’s entry into the EU until 2028.
