Politico, an influential American newspaper says Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili’s claim that he is out of politics is not to be trusted and that Ivanishvili’s goal is to “push Tbilisi out of the EU’s waiting room and into the Kremlin’s clutches.”
Referring to Mr Ivanishvili as an “oligarch,” Politico has designated him as “disrupter No. 8” as part of its broader ranking of 28 most powerful people in Europe in 2024 split into three categories: Doers, disrupters, and dreamers.
“If you believe Georgia’s former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, he has quit politics to dedicate himself to living the simple life at a dendrological park on the Black Sea. But Georgia’s richest man (whose estimated wealth is around a third of the country’s GDP) is widely known to be pulling the strings of the ruling Georgian Dream party he founded. His goal: to push Tbilisi out of the EU’s waiting room and into the Kremlin’s clutches.
According to analysts, Ivanishvili is largely responsible for Georgia’s pro-Moscow pivot since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Despite a fifth of Georgian territory being occupied by the Kremlin’s forces and their proxies in the South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the country has become a key hub for sanctions-busting parallel exports to Russia,” the article reads.
Georgian Dream Chair Irakli Kobakhidze has slammed Politico over the publication.
“I will answer in one word - it is shameful. We learn that such commissioned articles are written, in the case of America, through the FARA website. It is American law; we hear that such articles are written for money. Such schemes work easily, including in the European media - pay money and include such content in any article,” he said.
“Mr. Bidzina Ivanishvili is a firm supporter of Georgia who will go down in history as the one who stood by the side of this country in one of the most difficult times [...] Today, Bidzina Ivanishvili is out of politics. Of course, he continues to be one of the main philanthropists for Georgia, thanks to whose efforts a number of historical works were done in this country,” Aluda Gudushauri, GD MP, said.
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