Sens. Jim Risch (R., Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D., N.H.), two leading foreign policy voices in Congress, issued a letter urging Georgian prime minister Giorgi Gakharia to stop repressing pro-U.S. voices and ensure that upcoming Georgian elections are not marred by corruption. Risch and Shaheen both served in 2012 as election observers in Georgia.
The letter is the latest in a series of petitions from U.S. observers of Georgia, including House Georgia Caucus leaders and top officials on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The bipartisan group of lawmakers has sent increasingly critical letters to Georgian leaders in recent weeks, warning that the anti-U.S. backslide imperils the country's democratic progress.
In addition to violently repressing protesters, the ruling Georgian Dream Party‐led by Bidzina Ivanishvili, the country's wealthiest citizen‐has targeted pro-U.S. opposition leaders to delegitimize their movement. U.S. officials are now worried that Georgia will fall back into authoritarianism nearly 30 years after it broke free of the Soviet Union.
"These events give us pause and raise questions about Georgia's commitment to our shared values," Risch and Shaheen wrote. "Further, we fear that a lack of progress on reforms and increased tensions within Georgia will only open the door for increased Russian meddling in the country and throughout the region. The longer these actions continue, the more Georgia's security will be jeopardized, and we may be forced to reevaluate our partnership."
The country's failure to enact electoral reforms and subsequent suppression of protesters are chief concerns for Risch and Shaheen.