GRASS Disinfo Brief - February 5th – February 12th
05 February, 2024
0
- Parliament approves Irakli Kobakhidze as Prime Minister
- President Zourabichvili delivers the last report to the parliament
- Chairperson of the parliament releases long statement slamming Georgian CSOs, calling on donors to take their responsibility on their grantees’ actions and make funding transparent
- State Security Service said it intercepted shipments of bombs from Ukraine to Russia through Georgia
- Pro-Kremlin propaganda attacks the EU from different directions, repeats the “second front” conspiracy
- Pro-Kremlin Propaganda asserts that NATO is preparing an attack on Russia and Georgia could become a second front
- Pro-Kremlin propaganda blames the US for Georgia’s shortcomings
- Pro-Kremlin Propaganda portrays Ukraine as hostile towards Georgia, blames West for Russia’s full-scale invasion
- Pro-Russian propaganda emphasizes the “benefits” of relations with Russia, says Belarus is a model state
Parliament approves Irakli Kobakhidze as Prime Minister
On February 8th, the Georgian parliament approved Irakli Kobakhidze as Prime Minister along with his newly proposed cabinet. In his address to parliament preceding the confirmation vote, Kobakhidze outlined key priorities for the incoming government: the de-occupation of Georgian territories through a peaceful process, eradicating poverty, and tackling corruption. Several other points can be highlighted from the newly appointed Prime Minister’s statements:
- Kobakhidze stated that Georgia was in a horrible situation before 2012 – democracy was non-existent, human rights were violated, elections were systemically rigged, elite corruption was rampant, businesses were racketed, the courts were utilized as tools of repression, TV stations were hijacked, prisons were filled, and Western integration was stalled. Most notably, Kobakhidze blamed the United National Movement for “treasonously giving up Abkhazia and Samachablo to Russia in 2008” and signing the Council of Europe resolution, which stated that the Georgian side started the large-scale military operations.
- According to the new Prime Minister, all of the abovementioned “systemic crimes and anti-European governance” were stopped by Bidzina Ivanishvili in 2012, who was previously known for his unprecedented philanthropy, efforts to revive the Georgian culture and preserve national identity. It is the merit of Ivanishvili’s political philanthropy that Georgia did not experience a war during the Georgian Dream’s tenure, making it the only ruling party since independence to achieve this.
- Kobakhidze elaborated on the 2008 August war, assessing the United National Movement’s actions leading up to the war as “consistent steps towards a great treason”. According to him, the restoration of the borders of the South Ossetian Autonomous District, attributing the name of Upper Abkhazia to Kodori Gorge, and holding alternative, separatist elections on the territory of the former South Ossetia Autonomous District were all treasonous steps that resulted in giving up Georgian territories to Russia. “This was not a case of one-time treason; these were consistent treasonous steps that led up to the great treason”, the newly appointed Prime Minister said.
- Kobakhidze argued that if the opposition had won the elections in 2020 or 2021 and had the Georgian Dream followed the opposition’s demands after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Georgia would not have avoided “Ukrainization”, meaning that it would be dragged into a war with Russia. According to him, the 2024 parliamentary elections will decide the country’s survival. Hence, the victory of the Georgian Dream is vital in order to continue Georgia's progress and development.
- Speaking about the challenge of disinformation in Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze underscored that finding the right balance between freedom of expression and fighting disinformation is very important. He argued that if the ruling party were to copy German or UK laws in this regard, it would be labelled as Russian law.
- Referring to the 2021 April 19th agreement mediated by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and signed by Georgian political parties, the new Prime Minister adamantly stated that the Georgian Dream will never sign such an agreement in the future no matter who will mediate or engage in the negotiations. He argued that the agreement went beyond the bounds of the constitutional framework.
- In 2004-2012, the incumbent government did everything to "destroy the structure of society, get rid of the "Intelligentsia", undermine civil society, and form a pseudo-elite, which is currently engaged in pseudo-liberal propaganda targeting the Georgian Church and state", said Kobakhidze. According to him, a few groups of "talentless and incompetent people were labelled as civil society", which was a conscious step towards the degradation of society.
President Zourabichvili delivers the last report to the parliament
In her final annual address to parliament as President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili levied pointed criticism at the ruling Georgian Dream party.
- She accused the ruling party of prioritizing the consolidation of power over implementing democratic reforms in 2023, as exemplified by their initiation of the Russian law.
- The President also highlighted that the ruling party's consolidation of power has facilitated a new height of elite corruption left unchecked.
- Moreover, she argued the government has inadequately addressed the looming threat of Russian hybrid warfare. President Zourabichvili stated anti-European and anti-Western narratives have shifted from the political fringe towards mainstream adoption in official rhetoric. Meanwhile, attitudes towards Russia within Georgian Dream circles have softened noticeably.
- The President questioned the ability of the newly appointed Prime Minister to deliver on the Georgian people’s European integration demands when he is associated with Sergey Gavrilov’s scandal, the annulment of the April 19th agreement, the President’s impeachment process, and anti-Western rhetoric.
- The President addressed Bidzina Ivanishvili, who, according to her, is the one actually ruling the country. She urged Ivanishvili to clarify his vows to combat corruption and shift foreign policy that was mentioned during his re-entry into politics.
Georgian Dream members, most notably the newly appointed Prime Minister, were quick to respond to the President:
- Irakli Kobakhidze assessed the President’s address as “another usual speech from a representative of the radical opposition”. He argued that the only thing interesting about the President’s speech was that Zourabichvili's remarks substantiated the ruling party’s suspicions that she plans to resign this September and to establish a pseudo-middle ground political party to participate in the parliamentary elections.
- Responding to the President’s remarks about his ability to advance Georgia’s European integration, Kobakhidze said that Salome Zourabichvili is the one who should be questioned since she violated the Constitution, acted against the interests of the state, and damaged Georgia’s European integration process.
- Georgian Dream MP Mamuka Mdinaradze stated that President Zourabichvili’s speech was a speech made by a radical opposition member since it did not highlight a single achievement of the country in the past year. He argued that her failure to highlight any of the country’s achievements over the previous year stems from aspirations to helm an opposition bloc herself and to “transform Shalva Natelashvili’s garden into Salome Zourabichvili’s garden” (in 2019-2020, opposition political parties met in the Labour party’s office, which Shalva Natelashvili leads).
- Mayor of Tbilisi, Kakha Kaladze, argued that Salome Zourabichvili’s attempts to organize a new political force are reminiscent of “Shaliko’s garden” when opposition parties held meetings for coordination. According to Kaladze, opposition members have no love for Georgia, which is evident from how they ruled the country for 9 years (referring to the previous government). According to the Mayor of Tbilisi, the Georgian Dream government kept the peace, served the country’s interests, protected its citizens, and received EU membership candidate status “without standing on one leg, while standing tall”.
- Member of the Georgian Dream-affiliated People’s Power Movement, Sozar Subari argued that Salome Zourabichvili did not mention issues of either national identity, state sovereignty, or territorial integrity because she does not care about Georgia as it is not her homeland. He asserted one cannot claim two homelands, and the President's opposition sympathies signal she has not truly chosen Georgia as her own. Subari went on to say that Zourabichvili did not talk about issues relevant to Georgia because her patrons instructed her to criticize the government. Moreover, Subari pointed out Zourabichvili’s culpability in attempts to drag Georgia into a war when she advocated for allowing direct flights to Ukraine for volunteer soldiers.
Chairperson of the parliament releases long statement slamming Georgian CSOs, calling on donors to take their responsibility on their grantees’ actions and make funding transparent
The chairperson of the parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, released a statement on his social media page on February 9th, where he criticizes Georgian CSOs for being unfairly biased against the Georgian government and for purposedly attempting to distort the truth. According to the statement, certain CSOs abused and abandoned the only EU-approved large civil society union that interacts with the government - the Georgian National Platform of Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum (National Platform).
Papuashvili suggests that there are two problematic issues regarding Georgian CSOs – they are rich and entirely financed from abroad, rather than being funded with grassroots money or by domestic interest groups, while lacking transparency. He expressed suspicion as to why Georgian CSOs receive funds from above when in Geogria, people and businesses often donate to political parties without fear of political retribution. Moreover, there is also a lot of money spent on charity, which means people and businesses are not stingy either. “Given these factors, it is really surprising that NGOs never managed to convince either the public or businesses to fund their activities and, thus, have to rely almost exclusively on foreign funding”, stated Papuashvili.
The second problematic issue, according to Papuashvili, is that CSOs are politically biased. He highlighted that Georgian CSOs involved in writing the “Eastern Partnership Index”, which states that Georgia had “lost considerable ground across both democracy and good governance”, were unfairly biased towards. According to Papuashvili, these organizations later left the National Platform because, as it seems, “their only purpose, while in the Platform, was to distort the truth when working on the Eastern Partnership Index.” In the statement, he argues that most of the leadership in Georgian CSOs include former officials of the Saakashvili government, which makes it unsurprising that CSOs, at some point, directly declared their willingness to form an extraordinary Cabinet. Moreover, he said that certain CSOs support radical political parties that attack Georgia’s democratically elected government.
The Chairperson of the parliament raised a question about who would take responsibility if the radicals overthrew the government in 2020-2022. “I doubt either NGOs or their foreign funders would do that”, reads the statement.
To address these “issues”, Papuashvili suggests that CSOs increase financial transparency and fully disclose information about their activities while the donors take up their share of responsibility for the actions of the CSOs they fund.
State Security Service said it intercepted shipments of bombs from Ukraine to Russia through Georgia
The counter-terrorist centre of the State Security Service, as a result of operational search and investigative activities, removed several units of special explosive devices and a large amount of explosive chemicals, the State Security Service statement reads. “Deploying such a device in crowded areas would cause significant damage to infrastructure and large-scale casualties”, the statement claims.
According to the State Security Service, the explosives were transported from the Ukrainian city of Odesa through Romania and Bulgaria, entering Georgia from Turkey on January 19th. The plan was to transport the explosives through the Dariali border checkpoint to the Russian city of Voronezh. The explosives were transported to Georgia via a minivan-type car owned by a citizen of Ukraine. The State Security Service states that 7 Georgian, 3 Ukrainian and 2 Armenian citizens were involved in the transportation process, which was allegedly organized by a citizen of Ukraine, a former candidate for the Deputy of the Kyiv district of Odesa from the Servant of the People party, who is originally from Batumi, Georgia.
State Security Service also stated that some of the explosives were stored in Tbilisi, and it is still unknown whether or not they would have been transported to Russia or placed in Tbilisi for detonation. Despite this, as the statement reads, “The use of Georgia’s territory and the active involvement of Georgian citizens in the process may have been orchestrated to shift blame for potential terrorist acts, whether within Georgia or abroad, onto Georgia itself.”
The Ukrainian embassy to Georgia responded to the situation by stating that they would verify the information disseminated by the State Security Service of Georgia, investigate all the circumstances regarding the involvement of Ukrainian citizens in illegal activities, and expressed hope that the case would not be politicized. “We express our interest and readiness for a constructive relationship with the law enforcement and other competent agencies in order to objectively, impartially and fully clarify all the circumstances of the case and to determine its real organizers”, stated the Ukrainian embassy.
- The newly appointed Prime Minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, stated that the State Security Service’s statement confirms that high-ranking officials within the Ukrainian government wanted and probably still want to open a second front in Georgia.
- Georgian Dream MP Mamuka Mdinaradze also argued that there was a deliberate plan to frame Georgia for terrorist attacks in Russia and drag it into a war. This is not surprising as there were not only statements but concrete actions pressuring Georgia to escalate the situation. For example, when there were calls to send volunteers from Georgia to Ukraine. “Now, in this way, by organizing terrorist attacks, they are trying to involve Georgia”, said Mdinaradze.
- Another Georgian Dream MP, Beka Odisharia, claimed that “even Hamas and Hezbollah would not cause the same type of trouble for their countries [referring to detainees of Georgian origin].” He argued that even though there were many routes to transport explosives from Ukraine to Russia, the plan deliberately involved Georgian citizens and Georgian territory to drag Georgia into the war.
- One of the leaders of the ruling party-affiliated People’s Power movement, Guram Matcharashvili, stated that the Ukrainian government does not shy away from publicly attempting to start a military conflict between Georgia and Russia. Apart from accusing the Ukrainian government, Matcharashvili traditionally attributed attempts to open a second front in Georgia to the “Global War Party”. The Ukrainian government did not achieve anything by sending Saakashvili to Georgia and calling on Georgia to open a second front now they are directly trying to escalate a conflict, Matcharashvili claimed.
Pro-Kremlin propaganda attacks the EU from different directions, repeats the “second front” conspiracy
Propaganda narratives traditionally targeted EU values last week, with the propagandists suggesting that they are incompatible with Georgian values, and more so aim to undermine the Georgian identity:
- A propagandist on pro-Russian Alt Info argued that the Georgian state, with instruction from the West, is attempting to “change the mentality of society” by adopting “crazy laws” incompatible with Georgian values. As evidence, the commentator spotlighted contrasting penal responses - from Lasha Sharukhia's arrest over burning an EU flag (he has since been released) to Nata Peradze's brief jailing for religious icon desecration. According to the propagandist, these cases show how Georgian values are being deliberately eroded.
- Alt Info figurehead Aleksandre Palavandishvili echoed these allegations on-air, underscoring Peradze's brief sentence for religious desecration as proof the government prioritizes appeasing the West over defending Georgian values. The prominent anchor further claimed on a separate broadcast that the statement to build a "European state" intrinsically amounts to promoting an "LGBT state".
- The West tasked itself with fighting Georgian national values and, as such, targets the Georgian Church, a propagandist on Alt Info asserted. This narrative was supported by another guest on the broadcast, who argued that children are not taught about religion and Christianity in schools anymore, which points to the West’s conspicuous plan to undermine Christianity in Georgia.
- Hamlet Tchipashvili, one of the prominent pro-Russian propagandists who copies Kremlin narratives in his articles, argued in his latest publication on “NewsFront” that the main ideology of the EU is “The LGBT agenda, sex-change surgeries for children, arresting parents if they discipline children, legalization of drugs, and many other perversions”.
- Nikoloz Mzhavanadze, a presenter of pro-Russian Sezoni TV, alleged that European aid money fails to benefit ordinary Georgians. Instead, he claimed the funds further Western interests - namely, attacking Georgian churches and religious icons.
Another direction that anti-EU, anti-Western propaganda took was claiming how Euro-Atlantic integration is futile, damages the national cause of restoring territorial integrity, and undermines Georgia’s sovereignty:
- According to a narrative often reiterated by propaganda sources, the EU membership candidate status is “nothing but a piece of paper” which has no tangible benefits for Georgia. However, it used to silence and repress people with conservative attitudes.
- A propaganda source propagated that Georgia sacrificed itself to the West in hopes of receiving assistance from the EU and NATO in terms of economic development, restoration of territorial integrity, and security guarantees. Instead, it happened vice versa, and Georgia is being used as an instrument by the EU and NATO to advance their own economic and security interests.
- Equating restoration of territorial integrity to Euro-Atlantic integration is wrong; you either have to do one or the other, an anchor on Alt Info claimed. Moreover, writing that Euro-Atlantic integration is the main foreign policy goal in the constitution was an instruction from the West, which effectively abolished Georgian sovereignty and statehood.
- A frequent guest on Sezoni TV, Mamuka Kartozia, asserted that if Georgia were to become a member of the EU, it would have to do so without Abkhazia and Samachablo, effectively giving up on restoring territorial integrity.
Propaganda says the State Security Service’s statement about explosives being transported from Ukraine to Russia via Georgia is proof that the West wants to drag Georgian into a war with Russia:
- A guest on Alt Info thanked the State Security Service for preventing the explosives from crossing the Georgian-Russian border. According to him, if a terrorist attack took place in Russia with explosives transported through Georgia, Georgia would be dragged into the war. “This indicates that Europe does not want to give up on the idea of somehow involving Georgia in a war with Russia.
- Chief editor of the pro-Russian and anti-Western website Saqinform, Arno Khidirbegishvili, published an article about the case, where he claimed that the Ukrainian government and the West, despite their many efforts, were unsuccessful in dragging Georgia into war against Russia and decided to escalate the situation by using Georgian territory for executing terrorist attacks. Khidirbegishvili asserts that the “Georgian trace” in terrorist attacks in Russia would result in ruining the greatest achievement of recent times - a visa-free regime between Georgia and Russia and improving economic ties, which was in the West’s interests.
After President Zourabichvili’s address to the parliament, propagandists labelled her as an agent of the West:
- A supporter of the ruling party and one of the distinguished proponents of the Russian law initiated in March, 2023, Nana Kakabadze, appeared as a guest on Alt Info’s broadcast and claimed that President Zourabichvili deliberately damages Georgia’s national interests in order to serve the West. “She is being ordered directly from a foreign country, most possibly France”, said Kakabadze.
- Nana Kakabadze also argued that the West made a bet on Zourabichvili because she has Presidential power, which she already used in favour of her Western patrons by releasing “criminals from prison.” Kakabadze was most likely referring to Zourabichvili’s pardon of opposition politicians Gigi Ugulava and Irakli Okruashvili in 2019 and the Director General of Mtavari Arkhi TV channel, Nika Gvaramia in 2023.
- Another propagandist on Alt Info asserted that Georgia has been governed by powers controlled by the West for the last 30 years, and Zourabichvili is one of them.
- According to a propaganda source, the West is pressuring its agents in Georgia to undermine Christianity. “They want to remove faith, love of Christ and love of country from our children’s brains”, stated a propagandist on Alt Info.
Propaganda also asserted that the EU will be in control of the 2024 parliamentary elections in Georgia and will participate in deciding the future configuration of the parliament:
- Despite “already poisoning people with the idea of overthrowing the government through a revolution”, EU institutions will be involved in controlling the election process, a propagandist on pro-Russian “Solidarity Time” claimed.
- On Alt Info’s broadcast, Aleksande Palavandishvili claimed that the West set out a definite plan to create a consolidated government of the Georgian Dream and the United National Movement. The EU sees that “national wing parties” are growing stronger in Georgia, which is why it is supporting obedient political parties that have been cohabitating for the last 12 years. “After cohabitating for 12 years, they (the Georgian Dream and the United National Movement) will consolidate against the Georgian nation”, said Palavandishvili.
Pro-Kremlin Propaganda asserts that NATO is preparing an attack on Russia and Georgia could become a second front
- NATO is directly asserting that it is preparing for a war with Russia, which is a major threat to Georgia, a propaganda source alleged. By continuing to pursue NATO membership, Georgia risks getting attacked by Russia. In contrast to the UK and Italy, for example, Georgia is much more vulnerable, and if a war were to break out between NATO and Russia, it would be completely destroyed.
- Another propagandist reiterated the narrative, underlining that NATO might be able to handle a war with Russia by sacrificing the Baltic states and attempting to localize the war in Ukraine. Moreover, in case of a war between NATO and Russia, because of its NATO membership aspirations, a second front will be opened in Georgia.
- Pro-Russian GeWorld published an interview with Giorgi Gakhokidze, a poet whose interviews often appear on GeWorld’s website, filled with anti-Western propaganda. The respondent claimed that NATO is planning to start a third World War and has started large-scale military drills to prepare for the supposed war. He also asserted that multibillionaires have started building underground nuclear bomb shelters in order to survive the imminent global nuclear disaster, which is another testament that NATO is preparing to start a major war.
Propaganda blames the US for Georgia’s shortcomings
- Nikoloz Mzhavanadze of Sezoni TV claimed the US is financing campaigns which sow Russophobic sentiments in Georgia. The anti-Russian campaign resulted in a reduced number of Russian tourists, directly affecting Georgian citizens’s pockets. Mzhavanadze also argued that the US is not Georgia’s partner as the two countries do not have a visa-free regime, and Americans have never built a single factory to help the Georgian industry.
- Mzhavanadze also alleged that Georgian high-ranking officials are barred by the US to “visit Russia and normalize relations”, while the World Bank hinders Georgia’s economic development. The propagandist once again repeated that the US embassy controls Georgia’s internal political processes and allegedly fosters the unification of the Georgian opposition parties.
- A propaganda source stated that the US deliberately escalates the confrontation between Georgia and Russia to maintain its influence in the region. As the narrative suggests, Russia’s ongoing occupation, borderization and systemic harassment/murder of Georgian citizens would not occur if not for the US.
- A frequent guest on Sezoni TV, Dito Chubinidze, concluded that in 2022, the former US ambassador Kelly C. Degnan met with Bidzina Ivanishvili in Abastumani to discuss Georgia’s direct involvement in the war against Russia. As Chubinidze claims, she promised Ivanishvili that the US would supply military equipment if Georgia opened a second front in the South Caucasus.
- Pro-Kremlin propagandist and former Georgian high-ranking officer who was previously imprisoned for spying in favour of Russia during the 2008 war, Tristan Tsitelashvili, asserted that President Zourabichvili is not an independent political actor but is an agent of the US Intelligence Services. The same narrative was spread by a prominent pro-Russian social media account, which systematically shares disinformation. According to a post published by Irakli Zakareishvili, Zourabichvili receives instructions from the US embassy. Commenting on Zourabichvili’s remarks on corruption in Georgian government, he noted that “the US itself is entrenched in corruption, wars, and bloodshed.”
Pro-Kremlin Propaganda portrays Ukraine as hostile towards Georgia, blames West for Russia’s full-scale invasion
- Tristan Tsitelashvili appeared on Sezoni TV and commented about the statement released by the State Security Service. Tsitelashvili claimed that it is not a coincidence that half of the explosives directed to Russia were left on Georgian territory as, in his words, massive terrorist attacks were planned in Georgia by Ukrainians.
- Tristan Tsitelashvili also argued that “it is a lie that Ukraine’s fight is Georgia’s fight” because the Ukrainian government is hostile towards Georgia. He singled out recent discoveries of Ukraine-origin explosives en route to Russia uncovered within Georgia as evidence of the Zelensky administration's latent hostility towards Tbilisi.
- A propagandist on pro-Russian “Solidarity Time’s” broadcast stated that Ukraine aimed to open a second front in Georgia, and, in his words, Ukrainian officials have publicly confirmed this more than once.
- A propagandist on Alt-Info’s broadcast stated that Ukraine is getting destroyed and “practically removed from the world map” because of its pro-Western foreign policy. The narrative excuses Russia’s war crimes and full-scale aggression and shifts the blame to the Ukrainians and the West.
- In the same article where Hamlet Tchipashvili discredited the EU, he argued that every single statement made by Ukrainian officials is soaked with lies and hatred towards Russia. He refers to Ukrainian government officials as “fascists full of hate towards their people and country.” In addition, he claimed that the time will come when Georgians will see the true face of Ukraine.
- Pro-Kremlin propagandist on Sputnik Georgia wrote that offensive operations of the Russian armed forces are commencing successfully, which proves that the Western military-financial aid is futile. The Russian “special military operation” illustrates the defeat of US and NATO military equipment.
- One more article published on a propagandist website quoted Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who claims that Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine was provoked by NATO enlargement. The West broke the promise of not expanding near Russia’s border, effectively prompting the war. In addition, based on Kennedy’s statements, the article emphasized that financial aid allocated for Ukraine is a money laundering scheme and cheats the American taxpayers.
- A conspiracy theory-filled article on notorious GeWorld.ge titled “Ukraine’s economic suffocation: military-political dimension” argues that severe economic challenges in Ukraine are not a result of the ongoing war. Rather, they were one of the determinants of the conflict. Ukraine’s industry and economic development were deliberately undermined by the West, most notably the US, in order to prepare fertile grounds for a war against Russia. The US and other Western countries then utilized economic poverty to sow hatred towards Russians and foster radical nationalism. The author concludes that the West has several goals in Ukraine - strengthen Russophobic ideas and sentiments, militarize Ukrainian society, and destroy Russia at the hands of poor and starving Ukrainians.
Pro-Russian propaganda emphasizes the “benefits” of relations with Russia, says Belarus is a model state
- Sezoni TV host Nikoloz Mzhavanadze and his frequent guest, Dito Chubinidze, spoke about the benefits of Georgian-Russian relations throughout history, claiming that even though Russia has done bad things for Georgia, it has done a lot more good. For example, the propagandists once again recalled the Russo-Turkish War of 1878, where thousands of Russian warriors fought to liberate Adjara and reintegrate it with Georgia. According to the narrative, until there are no Russian soldiers in Adjara, the region is under constant threat from Turkey.
- The propagandists also claimed that Georgia was much more secure when it was part of the Soviet Union. Georgian soldiers serving in the Soviet army strengthened Georgia’s defence capabilities, even though it was not a sovereign country, and the Soviet Union used Georgian troops to advance its interests. Furthermore, Mzhavanadze said that during Soviet times, Moscow allocated funds to build factories, enterprises, and major infrastructure projects in Georgia, such as the Enguri Dam. The narrative excuses the Soviet authoritarian rule and argues that the narrative as if the Russians repressed Georgians is exacerbated.
- Another Sezoni TV guest, Tristan Tsitelashvili, also underscored Russia’s “merits” to Georgia, stating that Georgia’s population was larger during the Soviet Union but has since decreased due to Western policies. He also claims that the Soviet governance always took the Georgian people’s opinions and ideas into consideration under Soviet governance.
- Apart from Russia, Nikoloz Mzhavanadze and Tristan Tsitelashvili also praised Belarus, portraying Lukashenko’s regime as a model state. According to the propagandists, Lukashenko strengthened the economy by nationalizing infrastructure and natural resources, ensuring security by providing a nuclear umbrella for the country by partnering with Russia, and preventing coups from radical groups supported by the US.
- Nikoloz Mzhavanadze went further and blamed the loss of Abkhazia and Samachablo on the Georgian people’s anti-Russian, pro-NATO attitudes.
- Another Sezoni TV guest promoted renewed ties with Russia as integral for resolving the issue of Georgia's occupied territories. One pundit insisted that embracing initiatives like the 3+3 regional format offers a vital path towards taking back Abkhazia and Tskhinvali Region/South Ossetia. Additionally, another commentator argued that only a government willing to bolster Georgia's bilateral relations with Moscow could genuinely tackle the country's issues, defend its sovereignty, and restore its territorial integrity going forward.
- In an article published on Saqinform, the author Arno Khidirbegishvili argues that infrastructure projects that will link Georgia to Russia, notably via the occupied territories, will result in Georgia’s prosperity and security. By advocating for making the highway through the Tskhinvali region and a railway through Abkhazia operational links between Georgia and Russia, the author suggests that the Russian occupation of Georgian territories be overlooked. The editor-in-chief of Saqinform also advocates that Georgia becomes neutral and adopts a multivector foreign policy rather than focusing on Euro-Atlantic integration and “being a vassal of the West.”
