Georgian Vice Speaker Tsulukiani responds to sanctions, ‘I am an enabler and proud of it’

Georgian Vice Speaker of Parliament Thea Tsulukiani has responded to international sanctions imposed on her and other members of the ruling Georgian Dream party for alleged democratic backsliding, calling the measures “ridiculous” and attributing them to their loyalty to the party’s founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili.

Speaking on the TV programme Free Space, Tsulukiani dismissed the rationale behind the sanctions, which she claimed were politically motivated and designed to punish those who had refused to turn against Ivanishvili, the billionaire ex-Prime Minister widely seen as a powerful figure behind the scenes.

“What is the point of sanctions on me? I have Paris to see, Washington - what is the point? This is all getting ridiculous,” Tsulukiani said. “They are sanctioning us because we help him [Ivanishvili] pursue his course. That’s it. We are so-called enablers because we have not betrayed him.”

Tsulukiani further expressed readiness to accept “any consequences,” pledging that she would not step aside under pressure. She argued that Ivanishvili and his family had played a “critical role” in preserving Georgia’s sovereignty and preventing the country from descending into chaos.

“If it were not for Bidzina Ivanishvili and his family, Georgia might not even exist today,” she said. “We would not even be Ukraine - we would be gone, or just remnants.”

The Vice Speaker also rejected comparisons to President Salome Zourabichvili, who has clashed with the ruling party and garnered praise in some Western circles. Tsulukiani claimed that if she and others had turned against Georgian Dream, they would be “elevated to the status of God,” but insisted such betrayal was unacceptable.

“I confess to you - I am an enabler,” she said. “And we continue to work so that when the time comes, the people will choose the Georgian Dream again.”