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The United States imposed sanctions on Friday against Georgian billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, the country's former prime minister who is widely seen as the country's de facto leader in the southern Caucasus. Critics say the country has changed, taking an authoritarian, pro-Russian direction in recent months under his 'Georgian Dream' party.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was sanctioning Mr. Ivanishvili for "undermining Georgia's democratic and Euro-Atlantic future and pro-Russian actions."
Secretary Blinken said former Prime Minister Ivanishvili committed "actions or policies that undermine democratic processes or institutions in the United States or abroad, in favor of the government of the Russian Federation."
Former Prime Minister Ivanishvili, who made billions in Russia in metals and telecoms in the 1990s, quickly pushed his country's EU candidate status away from the West. He publicly accused foreign intelligence agencies of seeking to lead Georgia to war with Russia.
The sanctions mark the culmination of worsening relations between the West and Georgia, which was seen as among the most democratic and pro-Western countries of the former Soviet Union.
The Georgian Dream party, which is dominated by Mr Ivanishvili, says it is committed to a democratic and pro-Western Georgia, while also maintaining pragmatic ties with neighboring Russia. But last month it froze membership talks with the European bloc until 2028, abruptly halting a long-held national goal that is also written into its constitution.
This decision prompted over a month of protests and their suppression with the arrest of over 400 people, including high-profile opposition politicians.
The United States on December 18 sanctioned several senior officials of the Georgian interior ministry, whom it accused of complicity in the suppression of protesters.
The sanctions mean that any assets of former Prime Minister Ivanishvili in the United States are frozen. Mr. Ivanishvili and his government allies have repeatedly said over the past few years that the billionaire was already under "de facto sanctions" by the United States, something Washington has denied.
The Georgian Dream party did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the new sanctions.
The government in Tbilisi this year passed laws regulating "foreign agents" and the rights of the LGBT community that critics say were inspired by Russia.
Russia ruled Georgia for about 200 years until 1991. Polls show Georgians overwhelmingly dislike their large neighbor, which continues to support two breakaway Georgian regions.
Russia and Georgia have not had formal diplomatic relations since Moscow defeated Tbilisi in a five-day war in 2008. Russia has said it does not interfere in Georgia.
The unrest in recent weeks follows disputed elections in October, in which official results gave the Georgian Dream party almost 54% of the vote. Opposition parties have said the elections were tainted with fraud and are illegal.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, a critic of the largely ceremonial Georgian Dream party, has said she does not know the election results and will not step down when her term ends at the end of this month.
Her successor, Mikheil Kavelashvili, elected by ruling party lawmakers, will be inaugurated on Sunday.
The 'Georgian Dream' said he expects relations with Washington to improve during the term of President-elect Donald Trump. /VOA
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