In support of the law on “foreign agents” groups of pro-Russian radical forces became more active in the center of Tbilisi. So far, the case has been limited only to the burning of the EU flag.
On March 14, supporters of the pro-Russian forces burned the EU flag in the center of Tbilisi. The video of the demonstrative burning was posted by Echo of the Caucasus, which is the local editorial office of Radio Liberty.
According to journalists, pro-Russian forces have stepped up in Georgia, including supporters and leaders of the pro-Kremlin radical group Alt-Info and the Conservative Movement party, who are involved in burning the EU flag near the parliament building.
Representatives of groups advocating the adoption of the law on “foreign agents” tore down the flag of the European Union near the building of the Georgian Parliament and defiantly burned several EU flags at the rally.
Burning of the EU flag in Tbilisi
Timeline of protests in Georgia
We remind you that on March 7, Georgia adopted the law on “foreign agents” in the first reading, after which a wave of mass protests broke out in the country’s capital. The March 7 rally ended in clashes with the police.
On Wednesday, March 8, 15,000 people took to the streets in Tbilisi. The protesters declared their readiness not to go home even if the security forces used special means against them. On the same day, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed support for the protesters in Georgia.
Then, two days later, on March 9, the ruling party of Georgia withdrew the scandalous bill on “foreign agents” in the hope of returning to this legislative initiative again after the “emotional background” in the country subsides.
On the same day, it became known that the protesters, who were detained in Tbilisi at the rallies on March 7 and 8, were released.
On March 12, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili reproached Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other representatives of the Ukrainian authorities for supporting protests, to which the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry replied that the Georgian authorities were “looking for the enemy in the wrong place.”
