On October 26, Georgians will face a pivotal decision as they vote in their parliamentary elections, which could carry existential consequences for the country’s future. Voters will choose between a pro-Western political opposition and the anti-Western, Kremlin-friendly ruling Georgian Dream party.
It’s a decision that could determine Georgia’s future. Either Georgia cements itself in Russia’s orbit—where it already is—or escapes it and returns to a Western path. Two main factors are pressing against a return to a Western path: Russia is influencing Georgian politics with its support for Georgian Dream, and it’s interfering in the upcoming elections in more direct ways, too.
What Georgians want
Russia’s influence and interference in Georgia isn’t new; it’s longstanding and multifaceted, involving hybrid operations, direct military intervention in August 2008, and the ongoing occupation of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. But for many years, Moscow relied on marginal, openly pro-Russian political actors in Georgia to undermine the country’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, however, a deeper, more insidious alignment has come to light: Georgian Dream has increasingly revealed itself as essentially a Kremlin proxy, obstructing Georgia’s integration with Euro-Atlantic institutions.
Voice of Ukraine 