What is behind Georgia's anti-Russia protests
Published on: Sunday 07 July 2019
A political crisis in Georgia challenges the fundament of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s civilizational effort to project Russia as a major power whose defence of the Russian diaspora allows it to redefine the country’s borders.
The challenge emerged as protesters demanded the resignation of interior minister Giorgi Gakharia for violently breaking up demonstrations against the Georgian parliament’s invitation to Russian communist lawmaker Sergei Gavrilov and Russia’s de facto occupation of two Georgian regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
