A former Premier League footballer has been appointed president of Georgia amid heightening tensions over the country’s relationship with Russia.
Mikheil Kavelashvili, 53, was a striker for Manchester City between 1996 and 1997, and later played for several clubs in the Swiss Super League.
He was elected to parliament in 2016, and in 2022 co-founded the People’s Power political movement, which was allied with ruling party Georgian Dream, and became known for its strong far-right and anti-Western rhetoric.
Mr Kavelashvili was also one of the authors of a controversial law requiring organisations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as “pursuing the interest of a foreign power” – similar to a Russian law used to discredit organisations critical of the government.
Mr Kavelashvili easily won the presidential vote as the Georgian Dream party controls a 300-seat electoral college that replaced direct presidential elections in 2017. It is made up of members of parliament, municipal councils and regional legislatures.
Some protesters outside Tbilisi’s parliament building on Saturday morning brought their university diplomas – after critcism that Mr Kavelashvili lacks higher education – while others kicked footballs.
Georgian Dream retained control of parliament in the South Caucasus nation in an election on 26 October that the opposition alleges was rigged with Moscow’s help. Georgia’s outgoing president and main pro-Western parties have since boycotted parliamentary sessions and demanded a rerun of the vote.
Georgian Dream has vowed to continue pushing toward EU accession but also wants to “reset” ties with Russia.
But critics have accused Georgian Dream – established by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a shadowy billionaire who made his fortune in Russia – of becoming increasingly authoritarian and tilted toward Moscow. The ruling party has denied these accusations.
Georgian Dream recently pushed through laws similar to those used by the Kremlin to crack down on freedom of speech and LGBTQ+ rights.
Salome Zourabichvili, a pro-Western politician, has been president since 2018 and has vowed to stay on after her six-year term ends on Monday, describing herself as the only legitimate leader until a new election is held.
Georgian Dream’s decision last month to suspend talks on their country’s bid to join the European Union added to the opposition’s outrage and galvanised protests.
Thousands have gathered outside parliament every night since the suspension on 28 November, with riot police using water cannons and tear gas to disperse, with officers also assaulting demonstrators.
One protester Sandro Samkharadze said: ″[Kavelashvili] is not elected by us. He is controlled by a puppet government, by Bidzina Ivanishvili, by Putin.” Another waved a sign saying: “We are children of Europe.”
Demonstrators have vowed that the protests would continue.”If [the government] wants to go to Russia, they can go to Russia, because we are not going anywhere. We are staying here,” said protester Kato Kalatozishvili.
The EU, which granted Georgia candidate status in December 2023 on condition that the country meets the bloc’s recommendations, put its accession on hold and cut financial support in June following approval of the foreign influence law.
Follow our channel and never miss an update
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
