US senators called on the Georgian leadership to withdraw the law on foreign agents
If a bill on foreign agents is adopted in Georgia, the United States will consider the possibility of reviewing relations with Tbilisi. This was reported by a US Senate group in a letter addressed to Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze.
“We express deep concern about the proposed legislation, which jeopardizes the U.S.-Georgia relationship and raises the possibility of sanctions against individuals, the removal of direct government funding, and expanded visa restrictions,” the letter said.
The senators also rejected Georgian Dream's claims that the foreign agents law is similar to the US FARA.
The authors of the appeal noted that they have always spoken out in support of the democratic and European future of the Georgian people, and relations between the United States and Georgia are based on mutual interests and common values.
Earlier, members of the European Parliament by a majority vote approved a resolution stating that negotiations on Georgia's accession to the EU will not be considered while the law on foreign agents is in force. Amendments were also approved calling for sanctions against the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, and the release of the third President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili.
The Georgian Patriarchate assessed the European Parliament resolution as pressure on the country. “One gets the impression that European parliamentarians do not consider the sovereignty of the Georgian state as a full-fledged given. Georgia does not expect help from anyone in ideological matters, since the country does not need it. It is a fact that for years, foreign-funded NGOs and television channels have been waging a campaign to discredit the Church,” the Patriarchate said in its appeal.
This year, protests against the re-initiation of the bill on foreign agents in Tbilisi continue for the 10th day. Thousands of people gather near the parliament building, and the police periodically disperse the crowd. Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili regularly opposes the initiative of the ruling party.
