The ongoing political commentary and the concomitant reports by the opposition media emotionally suggest that Sakartvelo is currently isolated from the Western international community, corroborating statements like this with geopolitical developments of the past couple of years. The opposition’s branded and frequently voiced argument is that the country has shifted away from a pro-Western foreign policy toward an isolationist and more pro-Russian stance, resulting in deferred integration efforts into the Euro-Atlantic social, political, and economic structures, frozen financial aid from the same part of the world, and diplomatic sanctions from the United States and the European Union. It might be a huge journalistic pain in the neck to fairly stipulate the reasons thereof and define certain favorable steps to be taken to this end, but somebody has to do the job. How true is the statement of isolation? The government argues just as excitedly that the whole thing is merely rhetorical, whereas the opposition says it is indeed tangible.
In the summer of 2024, the EU declared our accession de facto paused, triggered by the adoption of the much spoken-about ‘foreign agents’ law. In exactly five months’ time following this, the government announced joining the Union as early as 2028. America has stopped its habitual aid, and the European Union has halted regular defense assistance, not to mention the visa restrictions. The number of high-level bilateral diplomatic visits to Western countries has shrunk too, and the October 2024 parliamentary elections were severely flawed and deprived of widespread international recognition. This is an overall factual picture, perpetuated by the opposition and strongly repudiated by the government. Now, the right of final judgment belongs to us, the people, whether it be called isolation or not.
Again, the supporters of the current Georgian government feel ready and adept enough to prove the opposite, but there is zero chance of concurrence on the part of their political opposition, which blames the administration for passing unfair and unnecessary laws, entertaining anti-Western rhetoric, engaging in anti-democratic behavior, and enjoying an unsavory geopolitical predisposition. Hence, the opposition will decidedly persist in qualifying the picture as ‘isolation,’ notwithstanding the adamant contrary stance of the government, absolutely defying the possibility of repealing the ‘Russian-tailored’ law, rejecting even the thought of rerunning the parliamentary elections, calling the return to the constitutional course absurd demagogy, and utterly refusing to agree that continuing a tone of critique toward Western allies is destructive.
Meanwhile, given recent reports, the ruling Georgian Dream party has expressed a well-founded desire and hope to reset relations with the United States, opening a totally new page in the relationship, which opposition political experts describe as impossible, provided the model of conduct and the style of talk both within and outside the country are not changed. So much for the presumable, but not completely proven, isolation!
How about a standoff? Does the situation sound like a deadlock? Listening to those who are prone to hurl criticism at the ruling power, sometimes the impression is “yes,” but in imaginable reality, this sounds only like a fleeting dispute, based on the fact of deeply appreciating cultural traditionalism and our national character by the force at the helm. Meanwhile, most Georgian people would go for both – to be part of the Western family of nations and to preserve their national roots safe and untouched. Whether this is possible or not is a horse of a totally different color.
And finally, does it look like only a temporary lull between Sakartvelo and the West? Yes, it looks like it, smells like it, feels like it. And if this is true, then the future still seems promising, with the hope that the flags of Georgia, the USA, and the EU remain flying together forever. Will this exacerbate matters and compel Russia to move against Georgia (as has always been feared by this government) and whet her appetite to hurt us? Not necessarily at all! Why not tell all of them now and straight – the West and the East, the North and the South – that Sakartvelo needs nothing except a guaranteed stable peace and mutually beneficial cooperation with the rest of the world, so that we scratch each other’s backs and roll each other’s logs, thus enhancing the standard of living in the country? Why is this so hard to conceive of and unfeasible to accomplish?
Op-Ed by Nugzar B. Ruhadze
