Kobakhidze credits Ivanishvili's ‘intellect and competence’ for his influence within ruling party

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has said ruling party founder Bidzina Ivanishvili's views prevail most often within the ruling Georgian Dream party because of what he described as the founder's exceptional experience, competence and strategic foresight.

Speaking to journalists, Kobakhidze said the party's leadership has developed a high level of trust in Ivanishvili's judgement based on political developments over the past decade.

"The reason Bidzina Ivanishvili's opinion most often prevails is that our team has exceptional trust in his experience and competence," Kobakhidze said.

The prime minister pointed to the events of 2011 and 2012, when Ivanishvili entered politics and led the Georgian Dream to victory over the United National Movement government.

According to Kobakhidze, many people at the time believed it would be impossible to remove the government from power.

"Were it not for his exceptional intellect and competence, what happened in 2012 would not have been possible," he said.

Kobakhidze argued that those events strengthened confidence within the ruling team that Ivanishvili possessed an unusual ability to plan and anticipate political developments.

The prime minister also claimed that Ivanishvili had accurately forecast future challenges facing the party years in advance.

He said that during internal discussions in 2020, Ivanishvili outlined potential political scenarios and advised the team on how it should respond if such developments occurred.

According to Kobakhidze, those assessments later proved relevant during the political challenges faced by the government between 2022 and 2024.

"He had already anticipated in 2020 the kinds of challenges our team could face and how we should act under such circumstances," Kobakhidze said.

The prime minister argued that this record explains why Ivanishvili's position often carries significant weight in internal discussions among party leaders.