TBILISI, DFWatch–A senior Georgian Dream (GD) official has accused Lithuania’s political elite of behaving like Soviet bureaucrats, following the Baltic country’s decision to expand visa bans on Georgian officials.
The latest visa restrictions adds ten more individuals to a growing list of Georgians barred from entering Lithuania, bringing the total to 112.
In a public statement, Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili suggested that Lithuania’s political establishment, many of whom he claimed come from former communist families, are acting out of “resentment left over from the Soviet Union.” He likened their approach to selecting targets for sanctions to Soviet-era arbitrariness, saying they are “almost picking names by lottery.”
Papuashvili comments highlight what Georgian Dream officials see as politically driven hostility from parts of the EU, particularly in response to Tbilisi’s controversial domestic legislation and its refusal to align fully with Western geopolitical priorities.
Lithuania’s Migration Department published the new sanctions list this week, targeting judges, prosecutors, members of parliament, and a regional official. The sanctions add to an ongoing pressure campaign by European countries for perceived failure by GD to comply with democratic commitments.
Tbilisi has dismissed the accusations and described Western criticism as unacceptable pressure on core issues. Georgia’s new ambassador to the U.S. recently met with Trump and Rubio, in a move interpreted as recognition of GD’s letigimacy.
