The current prime minister of Georgia, Irakli Garibashvili, is likely to step down in the near future, with incumbent Tbilisi Mayor, Kakha Kaladze, replacing him in the post, with Garibashvili instructed by the founder of the ruling party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, to head the recently founded “pro-Russian” Popular Force, political analyst Lela Jejelava told Front News on Tuesday. 

She suggested that the Popular Force, which was created in the summer by former MPs of the ruling party in a bid to “tell the public the truth”, was Ivanishvili’s “plan B” if Russia won its war against Ukraine. 

“It is very unlikely Russia will win. However, anyway, Ivanishvili is taking steps to prepare for such a development”, said the expert, noting that the Popular Force, which added five new MPs on Tuesday, was expected to unite all anti-western forces in the country. 

Ruling party MPs Tamta Megrelishvili, Zurab Kadagidze, Davit Kartvelishvili, Tamar Chiburdanidze, Nukri Shoshiashvili, Otar Chulukhadze, Nika Kobuladze and Ioane Shaishmelashvili  joined the movement today.  

It has also become known that MP Viktor Japaridze from the ruling party had bought 52% of the shares of POSTV, a channel labeled as pro-Russian, in order to “better convey their message to the population through television”.