DFWatch staff 
TBILISI, October 17 – Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Armenia on Friday, discussing bilateral ties and tensions in the Middle East. The meeting drew criticism from U.S. Congressman Joe Wilson. The talks took place in Yerevan on the sidelines of COP17, the UN biodiversity conference. According to the Georgian … Read more
TBILISI, October 14 – Lukoil’s Georgian petrol-station business could come under new ownership through a proposed US-backed purchase of the Russian oil company’s overseas assets, as temporary sanctions permissions approach their expiry dates. Reuters reported on October 8 that US envoy Jared Kushner and Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev had discussed a purchase involving the US … Read more
TBILISI, October 13 – The mother of a Georgian prisoner who previously accused prison guards of rape is demanding his urgent transfer to another facility. Irma Davitadze said Tuesday that her son, Giorgi Davitadze, is in danger at Penitentiary Facility No. 6 in Rustavi, a city near the Georgian capital Tbilisi. In a social media … Read more
TBILISI, October 13 – Georgian Constitutional Court judge Manana Kobakhidze has stepped down months before the end of her term, shortly after the court refused her request to withdraw from a lawsuit seeking to ban five opposition parties. The Constitutional Court said Tuesday that Kobakhidze’s powers as a judge were terminated early at her own … Read more
TBILISI, October 12 – Georgian prosecutors have charged three prisoners over separate alleged attacks on staff at a penitentiary facility earlier this month. The Prosecutor’s Office said one incident took place on October 2 at Penitentiary No. 6, in Rustavi, when an inmate allegedly assaulted the prison’s deputy director after the official came to inspect … Read more
TBILISI, October 12 – Georgia is working to persuade Russia to reverse new restrictions on products from several major Georgian companies, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said Monday. “We are looking into this issue and hope that this decision will be changed. We are working on it,” Kobakhidze told reporters. Russia introduced the restrictions on October … Read more
TBILISI, October 12 – Georgia’s government has increased a planned pension rise for people under 70 from 20 lari to 45 lari, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced Monday. From January 1, the monthly pension for people under 70 will rise to 415 lari, except for pensioners living in high-mountain areas. The 2027 draft budget had … Read more
TBILISI, October 12 – Georgia’s Constitutional Court has refused a judge’s request to step aside from a case seeking to ban five opposition parties. The judge asked to be recused due to past involvement with the ruling party, raising doubts about her impartiality. Judge Manana Kobakhidze asked to recuse herself on October 9. She said … Read more
TBILISI, October 11 – Georgia’s political and religious leaders gathered in Tbilisi on Sunday for an international symposium marking 1,700 years since Christianity was declared the country’s state religion. The symposium, titled “God, Homeland, Human,” opened at the Radisson hotel and was attended by Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili … Read more
TBILISI, October 11 – EU Ambassador Paweł Herczynski accused Tbilisi of anti-European rhetoric on Saturday. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze responded by accusing Brussels of attempting to overthrow Georgia’s government. Speaking at a Europe Day event in Kakheti on Saturday, Herczynski struck a conciliatory note toward Georgian society, saying the country belonged in Europe and that … Read more