Thursday, March 26, 2026

Georgia toughens rules for soldiers who quit contracts early

TBILISI, March 25 – Georgia’s Defense Ministry has submitted amendments to parliament that would tighten the rules for people leaving military contracts early, including automatic transfer into eight months of compulsory national service in many cases. According to Interpressnews, the proposed changes would be made to Georgia’s Defense Code and would affect several issues linked … Read more

Georgia scores higher on freedom and happiness

TBILISI, March 24 – The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party said Tuesday that the country recorded its highest ever score in the latest World Happiness Report. GD officials claimed the latest ranking results covering 147 countries, compiled by Oxford University, highlight a strong progress in living conditions and public confidence in the South Caucasus nation. … Read more

Jailed ex-president Saakashvili asks to attend Patriarch Ilia II’s funeral

TBILISI, March 19 – The imprisoned former Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili has asked to be taken to the funeral of Patriarch Ilia II, saying he wants to attend as both a friend of the late church leader and as Georgia’s third president. Saakashvili announced the request on social media on Wednesday, stating that he had … Read more

Ilia II lies in state as Georgia enters public mourning

TBILISI, March 19 – Georgia’s mourning for Patriarch Ilia II moved into a public phase on Wednesday and Thursday, as the late church leader was transferred to Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi (pictured) and the cathedral was opened around the clock for mourners. Ilia II, who led the Georgian Orthodox Church for nearly half a … Read more

Georgia mourns loss of Patriarch Ilia II

TBILISI, March 18 – Ilia II, the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia and one of the most influential figures in the country’s modern history, died Tuesday night at the age of 93, church and state officials said. The official announcement was made at the Caucasus Medical Center by Metropolitan Shio, the patriarchal locum tenens. According to … Read more

Georgian lawmakers grill major retail chains over prices

TBILISI, March 16 – Nearly three months after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze criticized high retail markups, lawmakers are pressing supermarket chains to explain how shelf prices are actually formed. At the parliamentary commission’s seventh working session on Monday, representatives of large retail operators including Carrefour, Ori Nabiji, Nikora and Daily Group were called in to … Read more

OSCE report criticizes Georgia for democracy deficit

TBILISI, March 13 – A fresh political fight broke out in Georgia after the OSCE published its long-awaited report under the so-called Moscow Mechanism, saying the country experienced a drop in democratic standards during the period under review. The report, which was made public Thursday evening, examines developments in Georgia since the spring of 2024. … Read more

22 Georgians safe as tanker ablaze in Iraqi waters

TBILISI, March 12 – One of the two oil tankers that caught fire overnight near Iraq was carrying 22 Georgian crew members. All of them were safely evacuated, according to Georgian media reports. Interpressnews, citing Greek media, reported that the vessel was the Zefyros, a Maltese-flagged tanker owned by a company in Greece. The report … Read more

Georgia evacuates residents after landslide in Tkibuli

TBILISI, March 12 – Emergency crews began evacuating residents in western Georgia on Thursday after a landslide hit a village in the Tkibuli municipality, while authorities also shut down a nearby section of road because of damage caused by the same slide. Georgia’s Emergency Management Service said the landslide struck the village of Kursebi, in … Read more