Daily Cable – July 21, 2025

How the week went - What was so special about Saturday march - Fate of stranded Ukrainians - Week ahead - Archive: 2006 Moscow-Tbilisi tensions - Protest Visuals Note: Our Monday newsletters offer a broader overview of the past week and the week ahead. About Past Week The past week was tense and eventful for Georgia. Here are key events: A building collapse killed two in Tbilisi and drew backlash and protests over the failure of city authorities to protect the citizens; Giorgi Bachiashvili, the ex-associate of Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, was beaten in jail, months after he tried to flee the country, citing threats to his life if imprisoned. The beating continued a trend of GD going after its former allies. Various EU institutions made it clear Georgia risked losing visa-free privilege unless it put an end to democratic backsliding. The deadline for progress update was set till the end of summer but the Georgian Dream leaders made its intention clear by downplaying visa-free travel as "not existential," and doubling down on conspiracies portraying the Brussels warning as "Global War Party" blackmail to drag Georgia into the war with Russia, but also... to push Georgia to refuse traditional gender roles; Latvia and Estonia imposed travel bans on dozens more Georgian officials; another protester was sentenced to years in jail; and two were arrested in Batumi over attempted fissile material sale. Weekend News What was so special about the July 19 march? The July 19 march in Tbilisi was pre-organized by eight opposition parties and civic activists, calling for a boycott of the October 4 local elections. Two major opposition forces, Gakharia’s For Georgia and Lelo/Strong Georgia, want to run despite their supporters' skepticism, saying the elections are an opportunity to mobilize resistance. The sweltering heat nonwithstanding, the turnout was high. While it’s difficult to say whether the crowd was larger than at other major rallies in recent months, this one felt different - more vibrant than the often somber protests of the past, and notably better organized. The spotlight was on several emerging political parties, including the Federalists, led by Tamar Chegoleishvili, and Freedom Square, led by Levan Tsutskiridze. Many were pleasantly surprised to see protesters cheering when opposition politicians spoke: mistrust toward parties and politicians remains widespread. Also hard to say, whether the crowd was primarily drawn by the march’s main message of boycotting the elections, since the continued sentencing of demonstrators, and growing fears of losing visa-free travel have reignighted anger. Still, the marchers and observers were left with the feeling that the spirit of resistance is alive. Ukrainians in Limbo The number of Russia-deported Ukrainians stranded on the neutral zone at the Russia-Georgia border has been growing, sparking concerns of a "humanitarian crisis" as the deportees have reported poor conditions. Officials from both Kyiv and Tbilisi made statements during the weekend, saying consultations were underway to ensure safe transportation of deportees to Ukraine, a process apparently suspended over documentation-related technicalities with Moldova. The number of such deportees in the border zone is currently estimated between 80 and 90 as we wrote here. Parallel to these developments, Georgian Dream officials, including GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili, posed on July 19 in Kakheti, Eastern Georgia, with Ukrainian children reportedly invited to a government-funded summer camp. According to the official press release, the camp includes “children of those serving in the Ukrainian military and fighters killed in the war.” The sight stood in stark contrast to all Tbilisi-Kyiv tensions and the Georgian Dream's not very Ukraine-friendly rhetoric, including in the context of Russian aggression. What to expect Despite the holiday season, courts continue to work at full capacity, including on criminal cases of detained protesters. A final hearing has been scheduled today on the case of Anatoli Gigauri, another protester charged with assaulting police, but we don't know if the verdict will be immediately announced. Also: July 19 march culminated in opposition politicians announcing "systemic reset of Georgian politics," including plans to start "organizing members of resistance" in every Georgian town and municipality. We've heard such promises before, so we are yet to see how real this gets. Memory Lane: From Civil.ge Archives OTD in 2006: Russian MFA: No Space in Putin’s CIS Schedule for Talks with Saakashvili On July 21, 2006, Civil.ge's coverage focused on then-President Mikheil Saakashvili's cancelled Moscow visit, which apparently came amid tensions over the Tskhinvali Region/South Ossetia. At the same time, Giorgi Khaindrava lost his job as State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues amid his confrontation with a more "hawkish" then-Defense Minister Irakli Okruashvili. Back to the present, currently Khaindrava is one of the most hardline propagandists of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Ex-Defense Minister Okruashvili, on the other hand, is behind bars after being sentenced to eight months in jail for boycotting the Tsulukiani commission in the GD parliament. Our reports: 21/07/2006 - Khaindrava Attacks Okruashvili 21/07/2006 - Okruashvili Slams State Minister Khaindrava Visual Stories Protesters arrive at the parliament after a large and dynamic march on July 19, 2025. Photo: Nino Saghiridze/Civil.ge and... Tamar Chergoleishvili, leader of the opposition Federalist party, addresses the crowd after the march, July 19, 2025. Photo: Nino Saghiridze/Civil.ge Follow Nino Saghiridze, Civil.ge's photographer, on Instagram here. Follow Civil.ge's visual stories here.

Daily Cable – July 21, 2025

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