Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili has strongly criticized Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze following an international legal ruling over the failed Anaklia Port project. In a Facebook post, he alleged that the two entrepreneurs, after failing to deliver on a key national infrastructure promise, are now actively harming Georgia’s interests.
He warned that any foreign official or diplomat who chooses to engage with them moving forward should be viewed as complicit in what he described as a scheme targeting the Georgian public.
According to Papuashvili, the ruling from the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) — affiliated with the World Bank — found in favor of the Georgian government. The arbitration body reportedly concluded that the failure of the Anaklia Port initiative was due entirely to the actions of Khazaradze, Japaridze, and their associates, and not the result of any government interference.
Papuashvili also referenced earlier court decisions, both domestic and international, that had gone against the two businessmen. He accused them of attempting to extract $1.5 billion from public resources, while ultimately being ordered to repay over $7 million. He also cited a past fraud case involving $17 million, for which both men were sentenced to seven years in prison, and the bank involved was penalized $3 million.
He further criticized the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) for granting them membership three years ago, implying that this raised serious ethical questions about the group’s values.
Papuashvili questioned whether ALDE would reconsider its association with Khazaradze and Japaridze in light of the recent legal decisions, or if, as he put it, their membership was merely bought.
In closing, he reiterated his claim that any international figure who continues to support or meet with the two should be viewed as backing a deliberate betrayal of the Georgian public.
The Ministry of Justice wrote: “The Washington Arbitration (World Bank’s International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes – ICSID) has issued a decision on the Anaklia Port case and fully satisfied the Georgian government’s demands. This time, the Washington Arbitration has confirmed that the failure to implement the Anaklia Port project is entirely the responsibility of Mamuka Khazaradze, Badri Japaridze and their partners, and there has been no interference in any way by the Georgian government,” reads the statement.
Opposition Fires Back: Anaklia Port Project Was Sabotaged by the Government, Not Entrepreneurs
In response to the Ministry of Justice’s above announcement, the opposition party Lelo – Strong Georgia issued a sharp rebuttal, accusing the Georgian government of distorting the facts and acting under foreign influence.
The party claims that the arbitration ruling, regardless of its content, does not absolve the government of its responsibility for derailing what was meant to be a strategic infrastructure project. According to Lelo, the project was deliberately halted six years ago, allegedly due to pressure from Moscow, and since then, no meaningful development has taken place.
“The administration continues to mislead the public by falsely tying Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze to this arbitration process,” the party said in a statement. “In reality, this legal dispute was between a foreign investor, Bob Meyer, and the state. It had nothing to do with the two men the government keeps scapegoating.”
The opposition also emphasized that Georgia was expected to begin operations at the Anaklia Port by 2020 — a milestone that has long passed without any progress. They urged citizens and observers to read the Anaklia Development Consortium’s own statement on the matter, adding that international investors are expected to provide further clarification.
Investor Bob Meyer and the Anaklia Development Consortium have also released formal comments in light of the arbitration ruling. While they acknowledged the outcome as unfavorable, they stressed that the tribunal focused only on a limited legal matter: whether the government’s contract termination conformed to a bilateral investment treaty with the Netherlands. Meyer emphasized that his decision to invest stemmed from a belief in Georgia’s economic potential and his trust in the consortium’s leadership.
ADC, in its own response, accused the government of political sabotage and of abandoning its responsibilities after ending the contract in 2020 — pointing out that, five years later, there is still no active agreement or construction on the port. According to the consortium, if the original plan had been supported, the Anaklia Port would now be operating, employing thousands and transforming Georgia’s strategic position in international trade.
Although the Ministry of Justice claims a complete legal victory with the ICSID ruling, Lelo – Strong Georgia insists that the root of the failure lies with the state itself, which, they allege, undermined the project for political reasons tied to regional power dynamics — leaving Georgia without a vital piece of infrastructure it was promised years ago.
By Team GT
