The US Department of Justice recently released another document dated February 28 that sheds light on the activities of lobbying companies hired by Mikheil Saakashvili’s family.

“There is alarming news coming from Georgia. The conditions of the former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili’s imprisonment are very harsh and his very life is in grave danger. It is imperative that President Joe Biden and the leaders of the free world do everything they can to save the life of this man who worked tirelessly to promote democratic values and resist Russian imperialism.

Mr. Saakashvili has always been a champion of universal human values, a stalwart ally to the West and the United States, and a strong critic of Russian hegemony over the former-Soviet republics. As the third President of Georgia, he led the country through a transformation that in the span of only several years turned Georgia from one of the most into one of the least corrupt countries in the world, as recognized by Transparency International. After only months in power, he was praised by leaders in Europe and the United States for championing democracy and free markets and ending a period of de facto control of his country by organized crime groups.

Recognizing the success of a western-oriented approach and fearing a loss of influence over the former Soviet republics, Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Georgia in 2008 and after a brief war, Russia occupied 20% of the country, which it continues to hold to this day. At the time, Saakashvili warned of Putin’s imperialist ambitions but few in the West wanted to believe him and did not take his warnings seriously. It is reasonable to believe that if the West had mobilized to stop the imperialist ambitions of Putin, then we would not have to face the barbaric aggression of Russia in Ukraine today”, - reads the document.