Georgia's policy sparks frustration in US, Brussels Russian deputy FM says

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin has stated that Georgia's pragmatic approach to defending its national interests is causing frustration in Washington and Brussels.

He noted that Western powers are likely to continue their criticism of Tbilisi, Caliber.Az reports per Russian media.

“We see that the pragmatic policy being pursued by Georgia’s leadership, focused on upholding and protecting the country’s national interests, is literally causing heartburn in Washington, Brussels, and most of the Western countries,” Galuzin said.

"Given the comments coming from Washington and Brussels, we can assume that attacks on Georgia’s leadership will likely continue. If I understand correctly, Georgia's leadership still has a lot to do to defend its course," he added.

On November 28, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced that the ruling Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia party had decided to exclude negotiations on joining the EU from the agenda until the end of 2028 and to reject all EU budget grants.

This statement sparked a wave of anti-government protests in Georgia, which were accompanied by clashes with the police. In response, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia condemned the violation of human rights, violent suppression of legitimate protests in Tbilisi, and imposed individual sanctions on 11 Georgian government officials.

These sanctions included a travel ban to these countries for Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder and honorary chairman of Georgian Dream party, Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri, and other senior officials from the Interior Ministry. The Polish Foreign Ministry also expressed disappointment over Tbilisi's decision to freeze negotiations with the EU. 

Moreover, Galuzin noted that Russia believes that the West has understood the message following plans to deploy the Russian Oreshnik missile system in Belarus. 

He emphasised that the signal sent, in line with President Vladimir Putin's directive, was clear and unmistakable. 

"I believe the West has heard it. The signal, which was sent under the instruction of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, in the form of test-fire exercises of this system, was more than clear, substantial, and informative. I am confident that in the West, it wasn’t just registered, but taken very seriously," Galuzin added. 

On December 6, following a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State in Minsk, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko announced that he had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to deploy the Oreshnik missile system in Belarus. President Putin responded, stating that the delivery of the system could take place in the second half of 2025.

By Naila Huseynova