The Weimar Triangle’s foreign ministers (France, Germany and Poland) released a joint statement on October 10 reaffirming support for the European aspirations of the Georgian people, and condemning the actions of the ruling Georgian Dream Government that led to a de facto suspension in the EU accession process of Georgia. Ministers reminded Georgian authorities of the importance of “the scope and depth” of EU-Georgia relationships and cooperation.
After the Georgian debates, the German Bundestag passed a resolution entitled “A European Future for Georgia” which highlighted the democratic backsliding of the country and the anti-democratic acts of the current GD Government. The resolution calls for the German Federal Government’s response to be concrete. The coalition factions of SPD, Alliance 90/The Greens and FDP voted in favour, while the Union faction, AfD faction and BSW group voted no. The Left group abstained.
On October 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree expanding the grounds for visa-free regimes for Georgian citizens. Labor migrants from Georgia are now allowed to stay in Russia longer than three months. Previously, this right was granted to all other Georgians who entered the country. Russians, on the other hand can stay in Georgia 365 days consecutively. The changes were made by the decree published in spring 2023, when Russia canceled visas to Georgians.
Imedi TV, a pro-government channel, refuses to broadcast opposition ads until the opposition-leaning stations air those of the ruling Georgian Dream Party. The Communications Commission, which upheld GD’s complaints that opposition media refused to air GD ads, and declared them in violation of the law as well as subject to fines imposed by court, should do the exact same thing with Imedi. It remains to be seen what ComCom will do with pro-government Imedi TV if the opposition parties make a complaint.
Metro Production’s director claimed to have produced a video in support of the Georgian Dream electoral campaign. He said that several Metro Production employees worked as freelancers to film the GD election campaign ad. However, they claimed that they were unaware that the video was for the ruling party. According to media reports, the employees were told that the video was being made to promote tourism in Batumi.
Sergei Shamba (de facto foreign ministry of occupied Abkhazia) stated that Abkhazia will welcome Georgia’s apology in a meeting held with the co-chairs Geneva International Discussions. This would be a step towards reconciliation. Shamba also stressed that Georgia should refrain from formulas that are not conducive for the settlement of relations. For example, referring to Abkhazia or Tskhinvali in the same breath as “occupied territory.”
On October 10, the so-called Tskhinvali security council announced that it would restrict the movement of people across the occupation line during the Georgian parliamentary elections in October. The de-facto authorities announced that “to ensure the safety of South Ossetia’s population, and to exclude any possible provocations by the pro-Western, nationalist radical forces in Georgia, it was decided to suspend the work at the simplified border crossing point …,”.
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