Georgian protesters clash with police after PM suspends talks on joining EU

Police and protesters brutally clashed in Georgia after the country's ruling party suspended negotiations to join the European Union until 2028.

Police used water cannons, pepper spray and tear gas late Thursday to disperse protesters who took to the streets following the announcement by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

Georgian Dream claimed victory in last month's parliamentary election that the opposition in the South Caucasus nation dismissed as fraudulent and that has been condemned by European officials. The election on October 26 was widely seen as a referendum on the country's aspirations to join the European Union and the ruling party had indicated to voters that it would continue to seek membership of the bloc.

The interior ministry said it detained 43 people during the protests.

President Salome Zourabichvili said the government declared war on its own people and confronted riot police at the protest, asking them whether they served Russia or Georgia.

The Georgian president, who has a largely ceremonial role, previously said the ruling party rigged the election with the help of Russia, which previously ruled Georgia from Moscow when it was part of the Soviet Union.

She said the decision to suspend EU membership marked the conclusion of the constitutional coup which has been unfolding for several weeks.

The government's announcement that it was suspending negotiations to join the EU came hours after the European Parliament adopted a resolution that condemned last month's vote as neither free nor fair, representing yet another manifestation of the continued democratic backsliding for which the ruling Georgian Dream party is fully responsible.

European election observers said October's vote took place in a divisive atmosphere marked by instances of bribery, double voting and physical violence.

The EU granted Georgia candidate status in December 2023 on condition that it meet the bloc's recommendations, but put its accession on hold and cut financial support earlier this year after the passage of a foreign influence law widely seen as a blow to democratic freedoms.

EU lawmakers urged a rerun of the parliamentary vote within a year under thorough international supervision and by an independent election administration. They also called on the EU to impose sanctions and limit formal contacts with the Georgian government.

The Georgian prime minister fired back, denouncing what he described as a cascade of insults from the EU politicians and declaring that the ill-wishers of our country have turned the European Parliament into a blunt weapon of blackmail against Georgia, which is a great disgrace for the European Union.

We will continue on our path toward the European Union; however, we will not allow anyone to keep us in a constant state of blackmail and manipulation, which is utterly disrespectful to our country and society, Kobakhidze said. We must clearly show certain European politicians and bureaucrats, who are completely devoid of European values, that they must speak to Georgia with dignity, not through blackmail and insults.

Kobakhidze also said Georgia would reject any budgetary grants from the EU until the end of 2028.

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 party recently pushed through laws similar to those used by the Kremlin to crack down on freedom of speech and LGBTQ+ rights.

The EU suspended Georgia's membership application process indefinitely in June, after parliament passed a law requiring organizations that receive more than 20 per cent 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.