The USA has suspended the strategic partnership with Georgia – State Dept

The United States has suspended its strategic partnership with Georgia, according to the statement of the representative of the US State Department, Matthew Miller, on November 30.

“The various anti-democratic actions of the Georgian Dream violated the basic principles of our US-Georgia strategic partnership, which is based on shared values ​​and commitments to democracy, the rule of law, civil society, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and anti-corruption efforts. As a result, the United States has suspended this mechanism,” the statement emphasized.

It is noted that Washington and the European Union regret the decision of the ruling party “Georgian Dream” to suspend the process of integration with the EU.

“By suspending the process of Georgia’s accession to the EU, Georgian Dream rejected the possibility of closer ties with Europe and made Georgia more vulnerable to the Kremlin. The Georgian people overwhelmingly support integration with Europe. The United States condemns the excessive use of force by the police against Georgians seeking to exercise their rights to freedom of assembly and expression, including the freedom of peaceful protest. We call on all parties to ensure the peaceful nature of the protests,” the message states.

The US State Department calls on the Georgian government to return to the Euro-Atlantic path, transparently investigate all violations in parliamentary elections and repeal anti-democratic laws that limit freedom of assembly and expression.

Georgia and the USA signed the Charter on Strategic Partnership in January 2009. The document is aimed at deepening cooperation between these two countries, in particular, in the field of defense and security.

Currently, protests are ongoing in Georgia due to the decision of the ruling party “Georgian Dream” to abandon negotiations with the EU on accession until 2028. Georgian security forces used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the protesters.

After October’s parliamentary elections, in which the ruling Georgian Dream party won 54 percent of the vote, the opposition and Western governments say the vote was marred by irregularities and Russian influence.