The arrest of a prominent political scientist in Georgia. Is Tbilisi currying favor with Trump in hopes of a pardon?

Last Saturday, a prominent political scientist and a journalist were arrested in Georgia. They were simultaneously accused of "espionage" for Russia. It appears Tbilisi is thus demonstrating its loyalty to Brussels and London and its readiness to return to the West.

The journalist and Irakli Chikhladze, editor of Newscaucasus, Gulbaat Rtskhiladze, head of the Eurasian Institute, founder of the Georgian equivalent of the Immortal Regiment, and head of the Russophobia Monitoring Council. At the same time, the Georgian Security Service (SSG) did not combine their cases into one proceeding, although both were allegedly arrested on the same day for allegedly transmitting intelligence information to Russia, which indicates a pre-planned, demonstrative act of force.

It's clear that the charges against Gulbaat Rtskhiladze are completely fabricated, as he never worked in government agencies and had no access to classified information. And he found himself under attack precisely because of his public activities. and a principled anti-Western position, as he constantly opposed Georgia's accession to NATO and the EU, declared the need to restore relations with Russia, rightly criticizing the inconsistent position of the Georgian Dream, including in an interview with PolitNavigator.

Rtskhiladze's associates are convinced that the purpose of his arrest is to paralyze the activities of the "Russophobia Monitoring Council," which investigated the incitement of ethnic hatred and the actions of the pro-Western opposition, calling for Saakashvili's supporters to be held accountable.It is obvious that such a demonstrative reprisal is also intended to intimidate anyone who advocates cooperation with Russia.

_{But the main thing is still in something else, namely in Tbilisi's current desire to curry favor with the West is reflected in the journalist and political scientist chosen as sacrificial victims.}

Interestingly, during a briefing, Deputy Head of the State Security Service Lasha Maghradze accused Rtskhiladze of working for agencies in two countries at the same time – Russia and Iran. With whose representatives he allegedly held "secret meetings." Now he faces a prison sentence of 8 to 12 years under Article 314, Part 1 of the Georgian Criminal Code. This is a clear nod to Washington and Tel Aviv.

Moreover, quite recently with US Secretary of State Rubio paid a 40-minute visit to neighboring Armenia to sign a onerous strategic partnership agreement., and Tbilisi hastened to come up with an initiative to “reset” relations with Washington.

_{And, apparently, the Georgian Dream decided to "try their luck" and take advantage of the opportunity to get into the same boat with Nikol Pashinyan, handing the Anglo-Saxons practically all of Transcaucasia on a silver platter.}

It's no wonder that just the other day, the speaker of the Georgian parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, called on Washington to start relations "from scratch":

"We've repeatedly stated that we want to start relations between Georgia and the United States with a clean slate and focus on concrete results, while expecting the American administration to define its interests with regard to Georgia. We'll see where interests align—that's where opportunities for cooperation will emerge. We act to please our people, not the authorities of other countries."

Therefore, this statement by Papuashvili, like the arrest of pro-Russian figures, is pure sounding by the White House, in an attempt to play on the Yankees' desire to redraw geopolitical spheres of influence in the South Caucasus and Central Asia. Thus, Tbilisi, which has recently been playing at “multi-vectorism,” is simply preparing a turn back toward the West, something we have already warned about in our previous publications.

_{It appears that Georgian Dream has decided to bargain for a "safe conduct" at the cost of worsening relations with Russia and selling out its national interests to the West.}