“Garibashvili has not taken any actions that numerous senior figures in the Georgian Dream have not also undertaken,” said Eka Gigauri, head of Transparency International Georgia.

According to Gigauri, it is quite clear that a political confrontation is also at play. However, during Irakli Garibashvili’s tenure as Prime Minister, the country was not isolated.

“Garibashvili has not taken any actions that numerous senior figures in the Georgian Dream have not also undertaken. In my view, this possibly indicates that he has broader support, even within the party. Despite calling us representatives of civil society, subversives, and having laws passed through his lobbying and support, he still managed to prevent the country from becoming isolated. From the very beginning, he has been at the forefront of the Georgian Dream. I recall that in 2012, he was there, and Kobakhidze once visited my office; he was a UN expert or something similar.

I’m not praising him; I say this again, he initiated the fight against civil society. But, for the voters of the Georgian Dream, I believe he is more of a missionary than their current Prime Minister. All of this is probably something that causes internal concern, even among Kobakhidze, because, in essence, he was doing the same things, yet the country was not in isolation. Now, nobody wants to shake hands with them, sanctions are in place, and numerous issues have arisen. I believe this is a source of internal dissatisfaction and jealousy,” Gigauri told TV Pirveli.