The US Helsinki Commission announced it will hold a hearing on September 10 titled “From Partner to Problem: Georgia’s Anti-American Turn.”
“Georgia was once a core US partner and a beacon of freedom in the Caucasus. Today, the ruling Georgian Dream party is dragging the country back into Russia’s orbit while deepening ties with China and other US adversaries,” the Commission stated.
Based on the announcement, Georgian Dream has weakened democratic institutions, undermined sovereignty by favoring Chinese investment while blocking US businesses from Middle Corridor trade and access to Central Asian rare earth minerals, jailed opposition figures, used violence against peaceful protestors, and refused to concede power after elections widely criticized as illegitimate. The Commission warned that this trajectory poses a direct threat to US interests in the region.
The hearing will assess the global implications of Georgia’s democratic backsliding and explore US policy responses, including the bipartisan MEGOBARI Act, designed to support the Georgian people in preserving independence and their longstanding partnership with the United States.
Invited witnesses include former Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, former Defense Minister Tinatin Khidasheli, and Luke Coffey, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center on Europe and Eurasia.
