Gov’t claims of ‘thousands of Arab millionaire investors’ in Georgia ‘not credible’, opposition leader Japaridze

Zurab Japaridze, leader of the Coalition for Change, has dismissed government-aligned narratives suggesting that “several thousand Arab millionaire investors” were seeking to invest in Georgia’s real-estate market. 

In a letter sent from prison on Friday, Japaridze said he did not believe such claims even “one percent,” arguing that the narrative was being used to mislead the public.

Japaridze wrote that he doubted not only the idea of “several thousand” wealthy investors arriving in Georgia, but even the existence of “five” who might be interested under current political conditions.

 According to him, such investors would have shown interest years ago - when Georgia was “moving rapidly toward the West” - rather than now, when the country was “in full isolation.”

Addressing public debate around the controversial six billion USD Eagle Hills development project, Japaridze criticised both government promotion and opposition reactions, but marked the government’s messaging as particularly deceptive. 

He argued that political actors deliberately emphasized the word “Arab” to provoke emotional reactions and mobilise supporters.

Japaridze stressed that he saw no issue with foreigners living or working in Georgia provided they were not involved in criminal or terrorist activities. However, he voiced opposition to the simplified granting of citizenship. He called for restoring citizenship to former Georgian nationals who lost it due to what he described as a “stupid law.”

He also questioned the logic behind choosing Gonio as the primary site for large-scale investment, comparing it with nearby Turkish regions such as Hopa. According to Japaridze, Turkey offered better infrastructure, services, construction quality, and a larger buyer base. He argued that if a genuine USD 6.5 billion investment existed, it would logically be placed “on the Turkish side of Sarpi,” not in Georgia.

Japaridze said the key unanswered question was what the government was offering investors that Turkey would not. He noted that the public still had not seen the contract related to the project, which officials continued to withhold.

He warned that deepening Georgia’s political isolation will make investment attraction increasingly difficult and costly, forcing the government to accept “more onerous terms” and conceal them from the public. “Being cut off from civilization has always come at a high price,” he wrote.