PM Kobakhidze claims former US Ambassador pressured Georgia to open ‘second front’

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has alleged that former US ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan repeatedly pressured Georgian officials to open a “second front” during Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, claiming her conduct during meetings was “harsh” and “hysterical.”

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Kobakhidze referred to three meetings held with Degnan in early 2022, noting that he personally attended one of them.

According to the prime minister, the first meeting took place in early February, the second in late February shortly after the war began, and the third in mid-March.

“In two of the three meetings, there was open discussion about opening a second front,” Kobakhidze said.
He added that Degnan allegedly urged Georgian officials to consider guerrilla warfare if Georgia failed to deter Russian aggression.

“We were told directly: ‘If you cannot stop the aggression, you must move to partisan warfare.’
Even worse, we were told: ‘Even if the country collapses, fight from the forests.’”

Kobakhidze claimed that Degnan’s behavior during the meetings was confrontational.

“Degnan did worse than pounding her fists on the table. She would throw tantrums. It was extremely difficult to witness. I am certain she behaved the same way with Shalva Papuashvili.”

The prime minister also said that officials raised multiple questions during the meetings, but some were met with silence.

“There was one particular question we asked five times, and each time we received no answer,” he noted, declining to disclose the topic for security reasons.

Kobakhidze emphasized that he could not provide further details due to national security considerations.