Supporting the free people of Georgia
By Joe Wilson
The country of Georgia has long been a friend of the United States. A thriving democracy in a harsh region, it has withstood numerous assaults and attempted interference from the Axis of Aggressors — the Chinese Communist Party, the Iranian regime and war criminal Vladimir Putin — and remained a strong partner. Georgian troops fought side-by-side with Americans in Afghanistan, and I am grateful to have visited Tbilisi on multiple occasions. Sadly, Georgia now faces a historic threat to its freedom in Bidzina Ivanishvili and his corrupt Georgian Dream Party’s attempt to turn Georgia into a vector of influence for the Axis of Aggressors. Indeed, Ivanishvili’s puppet prime minister visited the Iranian regime at the very time that they were planning the attempted assassination of President-elect Donald Trump and corruptly handed the contract to build a strategically significant deep-sea port to the Chinese Communist Party.
In late October, Georgia held an election that resulted in a shocking and fraudulent victory for Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream Party against the will of the Georgian people. Numerous independent observers (including the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the International Republican Institute) have deemed the election fundamentally flawed. Nonetheless, corrupt Ivanishvili charged forward with his illegitimate parliament and installed an illegitimate president. Despite massive demonstrations, he has enacted draconian laws criminalizing protest and free speech, beating and dragging citizens from their beds before throwing them in prison.
Nonetheless, the brave Georgian people continue their protests. Salome Zourabichvili, the legitimate president of Georgia, has taken an extremely courageous stand in joining the protestors and demanding that free and fair elections be held. I am grateful to stand with the Georgian people and President Zourabichvili along with my bipartisan and bicameral colleagues. I urge all Americans to stand with Georgians as they fight for their freedom.
To this end, I called for sanctions on Ivanishvili with now Speaker Mike Johnson and incoming National Security Advisor Mike Waltz back in 2020. Now, four years later, the Biden administration has finally sanctioned Ivanishvili. But this is not enough. Along with my bipartisan colleagues, I am re-introducing the Mobilizing and Enhancing Georgia’s Options for Building Accountability, Resilience, and Independence (MEGOBARI) Act — MEGOBARI means “friend” in Georgian — to review all Georgian Dream officials for sanctions if they are involved in undermining democracy. There is still time for them to abandon Ivanishvili and preserve Georgia’s sovereignty. I will also introduce the Georgian Nightmare Non-Recognition Act to prohibit the United States from recognizing the illegal Ivanishvili regime until free and fair elections are held. Finally, I have invited President Zourabichivili to attend the inauguration of President Donald Trump.
The Georgian people are among the great friends of the U.S. and their very constitution includes provisions mandating Georgia’s partnership and deeper integration into transatlantic institutions. Freedom in Georgia is good for America and prevents Georgia’s strategic location from being abused by U.S. adversaries. It is imperative that the U.S. maintain its historic support for and relationship with this free people.
Joe Wilson is a member of the U.S. House of Representatives serving South Carolina’s Second Congressional District.
