UNM leaders urge EU to target sanctions at Ivanishvili, allies

Senior figures from Georgia’s opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), have held meetings in Brussels with representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the office of Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas, the party said on Thursday.

UNM chair Tina Bokuchava and her deputy Levan Sanikidze said their talks focused on safeguarding Georgians’ visa-free travel rights with the EU while ensuring that sanctions are directed at specific individuals close to the ruling Georgian Dream party’s founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili.

“While Ivanishvili has put millions of Georgian citizens at risk of losing visa-free travel, we are working in Brussels and in EU capitals to make sure that any suspension applies only to targeted groups – Ivanishvili, his entourage, propagandists, financial elites, abusers, and judges taking political decisions – and not to ordinary Georgians,” Bokuchava said.

She added that the opposition will continue pressing for both financial sanctions and restrictions on visa-free travel for individuals tied to Ivanishvili, whom the party accuses of undermining the country’s European integration.