Democracy in the Crosshairs: Unpacking Georgia’s Foreign Influence Debate

The Fletcher Russia and Eurasia Program held a roundtable on May 17, 2024 about the controversy surrounding the proposed “foreign agents” legislation in Georgia. The conversation focused on the roots of the current crisis, the implications of the bill for Georgian democracy, and the role of foreign influence in Georgian domestic politics.

The participants included Maia Otarashvili, Director of the Eurasia Program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute; Almut Rochowanski, civil society activist working in the former Soviet Union; Maxim Krupskiy, former visiting scholar, attorney, and human rights defender; Victor Kipiani, Chairman of the Georgian think tank Geocase; Eto Buziashvili, Research Associate for the Caucasus at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab); and Anatol Lieven, Director of the Eurasia Program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.

Discussion Questions:

What has precipitated the proposed “foreign agents” law in Georgia and the growing protests against it? What role does foreign influence play today in Georgian domestic politics?

What are the bill’s specific provisions, and how do they compare with similar laws in other countries? What democratic principles are at stake, and how might the law affect Georgian civil society and media?

How does the law fit within the broader context of Georgia’s foreign policy and its aspirations toward EU membership? What can Georgian policymakers do to address the concerns of both domestic constituents and international partners regarding the law?

What are the potential future scenarios for Georgia if the bill is passed? How might it affect Georgia’s internal stability and its international relations?

(This post is republished from the Fletcher Russia and Eurasia Program’s YouTube channel.)