“Against the backdrop of donors avoiding responsibility for the outcomes of their spending, legislative regulation remained the only way forward on this issue. Since spring 2023, Parliament began a legislative process aimed at disclosing the shadow financing of Georgian politics,” Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili stated, while presenting the report on the activities of the 10th convocation of Parliament.

As Shalva Papuashvili declared during his speech, the transparency law and the events surrounding it served as a “litmus test.”

“No state should be allowed to influence the life of a foreign society by spending millions of dollars, all the while concealing from that society what they are spending and for what purpose. Such paternalistic attitudes toward another nation, thinking in terms of ‘Third World’ or ‘Banana Republic’ stereotypes, belong to the 20th century. The transparency law and the events surrounding it served as a crucial litmus test. By 2023, the baton of the revolutionary movement had been directly taken up by foreign politicians and donors who assumed the leading role.

This is precisely why one ambassador was the first to label the ‘Georgian transparency law’ as Russian; why they glorified as a hero anyone who attempted to set someone on fire with a Molotov cocktail; and why they called stone-throwing a pursuit of peace, while branding the arrest of stone-throwers as an act of war. Just as the Molotov cocktail is foreign and unacceptable to our society, so too is surrendering our nation’s destiny to foreign overseers.

We slowed the process, and as a result, this attempt at revolution ultimately failed. By 2023, all foreign and domestic actors seeking to influence Georgia’s parliamentary elections had been identified and exposed.

This is why, in 2024, we faced an election campaign overshadowed by unprecedented foreign interference. We were told this would be the final battle—everyone against one. It was presented as a referendum. The collective “National Movement,” along with numerous NGOs, activist media outlets, destructive partisan media, trained demonstrators, foreign donors, and diplomats, all converged during these elections, which were portrayed as a referendum led by the outgoing, outdated president.

A fragmented, foreign-aligned agenda wrapped in a façade of European values clashed with the genuine Georgian national interest—peace and prosperity—that is embodied by the Georgian Dream.

Fortunately, the Georgian nation, guided by its historical lessons and deep civilizational memory, the vast majority of voters clearly recognised where truth, justice, and the country’s true interests lay. They saw and made the right choice. Strength resides in unity; goodness unites, while evil divides. Historically, Georgia’s downfall has been rooted in fragmentation and isolation. Once again, this polarisation was imposed upon us by foreigners, through their propaganda, whether from Canvas or USAID, fueled by hatred or legalised violence, which is now almost entirely equated with the European Union. In this tragic reality, it is precisely some politicians and diplomats from EU countries who bear direct responsibility. We have arrived at a paradox where, today, violence roams the streets, wrapped in the EU flag.

In such circumstances, the formula for victory is unity, strength, and faith in your country, your people, and your history. We have won this decisive battle. The tenth convocation of Parliament marked a turning point, as we made the national interest the cornerstone of the country’s development and wisdom the guiding principle for political decision-making. Wisdom is knowing the right path before the cart overturns—that is precisely what we achieved. We neither overturned the cart nor reversed the country’s progress. This mission has now been entrusted to the eleventh convocation of Parliament.

Today, we continue the work we began and remain committed to serving the country’s interests. The unification of the nation and the welfare of every citizen are our two primary national goals; every other objective, intention, and aspiration are measured against these standards. May God protect us in this endeavour,” declared Shalva Papuashvili.