American Senator, Jeanne Shaheen, claims that the struggle between democracy and authoritarianism is going on in Georgia. She believes that the government of Georgia is “increasingly moving towards autocracy”.

“One of the countries where there is an internal struggle between autocracy and democracy is Georgia, where it is clear that the population of Georgia wants to look towards the West, towards Europe. They want democracy. Senator Risch and I were there in 2012 to observe the elections when Georgian Dream came to power in the country. [Now] what we have seen is that the government of Georgia is increasingly moving towards autocracy.

One of the defining opportunities will be the upcoming elections in 2024. We will play a critical role in supporting these elections and sending observers to the elections. Can you talk about how important this will be and whether USAID is thinking about sending a long-term observation mission to support Georgia?” asked Shaheen.

The session, where the only question about Georgia was asked, lasted for more than two hours.