Ruling party official says country's “independence not for sale for any visa” in response to US Gov’t restrictions

Mamuka Mdinaradze, the head of the ruling Georgian Dream party in the Parliament, on Friday said the country's “independence” was “not for sale for any visa”, after the United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday announced visa restrictions for “those responsible for undermining democracy” in Georgia.

Blinken made the remark in connection to the law on transparency of foreign influence, adopted by the ruling Georgian Dream party, and also announced a comprehensive review of the cooperation between the two countries.

In his response, Mdinaradze claimed a “policy of blackmail and threats” was “continu[ing] to prevent Georgia from making independent decisions based on its own interests”.

The policy of blackmail and threats continues to prevent Georgia from making independent decisions based on its own interests. Despite spending hundreds of millions, the agents are so weak that they only rely on and benefit from actions of external actors”, he said.

The lawmaker also said citizens of Georgia, who he said would “never give up our land, language, faith, traditions, dignity, [and] justice”, would become “full-fledged members of the European family”, in reference to the European Union integration efforts of the country, and added ”[i]n the end, everyone will have to talk to the Georgian people and the Government elected by them, not [those] appointed from outside”.

The Parliament last week adopted the law, which requires groups “considered to be an organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power” - determined by more than 20 percent of their funding coming from abroad - to be registered in the public registry with the status and publicise their received funding.

It has been met by public protests and criticism from some of Georgia’s international partners, and was vetoed by President Salome Zourabichvili, however the ruling party has enough votes to overcome her veto.