U.S. Lawmakers Warn of Georgia's Authoritarian Drift at Helsinki Commission Hearing
By Liza Mchedlidze
Friday, September 12, 2025
The U.S. Helsinki Commission held a hearing on September 10 titled "From Partner to Problem: Georgia's Anti-American Turn", where lawmakers and experts examined Georgia's political trajectory and its implications for regional security. Testimony came from Georgia's fifth president, Salome Zourabichvili, former defense minister Tinatin Khidasheli, and Hudson Institute fellow Luke Coffey.
The session focused on what participants described as the Georgian Dream government's democratic backsliding, its growing ties with China, Russia, and Iran, and the stalled U.S. legislative response.
Wilson: Georgian Dream "Does Not Represent the Georgian People"
Co-Chair Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) accused the ruling party of consolidating power through the 2024 "fraudulent elections," persecuting opponents, and turning Georgia into "a laboratory of authoritarian control."
Wilson charged that the government has chosen to align with adversaries of the United States. "Georgian Dream does not represent the Georgian people," he said, noting that Georgians have shown through protests and demonstrations that they "want democracy, sovereignty, and a future with the West of peace and prosperity."
He added that the aspirations of citizens "are being crushed by a small group of oligarchs and autocrats who answer not to the people, but to the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing, and war criminal Putin in Moscow, and also spending time with the dictatorship regime in Tehran."
Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN) recalled meeting Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili in 2015, describing him as "rich, arrogant, elitist, very well thought of himself." Cohen said the ruling party "has turned into the Georgia nightmare" by discouraging dissent, conducting surveillance and intimidation, and permitting violence against protesters.
Wilson urged swift passage of the MEGOBARI Act, a bill that cleared the House in May with bipartisan support. The legislation would sanction Georgian authorities over corruption, human rights violations, and cooperation with U.S. rivals.
Cohen, who strongly supports the bill, said it had been "killed" in the Senate. "Unfortunately, the Senate didn't pass, and it looks like they are not going to pass the MEGOBARI law," he noted, suggesting that the measure was blocked by one senator over a port project.
Reports have identified Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) as the key opponent, with Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) also resisting the bill.
The criticism drew a sharp response from Georgian Dream leaders. On September 11, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze denounced Wilson and Cohen. "As for Joe Wilson, he is, first and foremost, a 'deep state' agent and then a funded lobbyist. just like Salome Zourabichvili and Tina Khidasheli," he said. Kobakhidze also called the MEGOBARI Act "a hostile act against the Georgian people" and welcomed its potential collapse.
"You know that we have a specific goal, to reset relations from a clean slate with a specific roadmap and renew a strategic partnership with the USA. We maintain hope for this. The rest depends on the new US administration itself," the prime minister added.
Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili likewise dismissed the bill, describing it as "first and foremost a matter of Congress's own prestige, not to adopt a hostile act against the Georgian people."
Zourabichvili: "Georgia Matters for the U.S."
In her testimony, 5th President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili highlighted Washington's decades-long support, noting that the United States had invested more than 6 billion dollars in Georgia's defense, economy, education, and democratic institutions. She warned that these gains are at risk.
Zourabichvili said she spoke on behalf of jailed activists, politicians, and journalists detained during protests since November, including journalist Mzia Amaghobeli, "a woman who is in jail for absolutely no reason."
She argued that Georgian Dream had "turned its back" on the United States by distancing the country from its allies and aligning with adversaries. "Without stability in Georgia there is no peace in the South Caucasus," she said, warning that if Washington fails to act, Georgia could become "a grey zone where all forms of circumventions, trafficking, migrant routes would be flourishing."
She concluded that there must be "real consequences" for those in power in Tbilisi. "The Georgian people deserve better - and so do the American people, whose support has always been rooted in the hope of a free, stable, and democratic Georgia," she stated.
Former Defense Minister Tinatin Khidasheli described Georgia as a strategic hub and "corridor of freedom" on the Middle Corridor trade route. She accused the government of blocking U.S. investment while courting Chinese companies, pointing to the Anaklia deep-sea port case.
"They created a textbook case, the American consortium was kicked out, and the promise was made for a Chinese company to fill the position," Khidasheli said, adding that while the deal has not been finalized, there is "a very strong interest on the Georgian Dream side" to move it forward.
Khidasheli urged Washington to impose visa bans on ruling party leaders and their families and to support Georgian students, civil society, and independent media. She defended the MEGOBARI Act as "the strongest possible signal that Georgia's democratic future remains a U.S. strategic priority."
She also noted past procurement contracts with Chinese companies, including firms sanctioned by the United States and Europe, and warned that surveillance equipment from these firms has been "used against the protesters."
Hudson Institute fellow Luke Coffey echoed concerns about Georgia's deepening relations with China, Iran, and Russia. He dismissed Georgian Dream's repeated claims that Western officials wanted Georgia to open a second front against Russia. "I have never heard anyone in Washington, D.C. suggest that Georgia should open up a second front against Russia," he said.
Coffey also rejected Georgian Dream's claim of ideological alignment with former U.S. President Donald Trump. "Cozying up to Iran is not in line with President Trump's worldview. Inviting the CCP into your critical infrastructure is not consistent with President Trump's worldview. Enabling Russia to circumvent sanctions undermines President Trump's ability to broker peace in Ukraine," he argued.
He urged U.S. policymakers to "play the long game" and be ready to rebuild relations when the political circumstances in Georgia allow.
The hearing ended with lawmakers stressing that Russian President Vladimir Putin must be confronted in Ukraine through strong sanctions and energy restrictions. "God bless the Republic of Georgia," Representative Wilson concluded.
