United States imposes additional sanctions on individuals in Georgia for their actions against democracy

The Biden administration has announced new sanctions on senior Georgian officials and others for their role in undermining democracy and human rights in the country. The sanctions include asset freezes on two top officials from the Interior Ministry, a media executive, and a media personality who were involved in suppressing freedom of assembly and peaceful expression in Georgia.

Additionally, visa bans have been imposed on over 60 Georgian government officials, business leaders, law enforcement officers, and members of parliament for their actions during heated debates earlier this year regarding a new law on foreign agent registration. The State Department did not disclose the names of those affected by the visa bans due to confidentiality reasons.

Among the individuals publicly identified for sanctions are Zviad “Khareba” Kharazishvili, the chief of the Interior Ministry’s special task department, his deputy Mileri Lagazauri, Konstantine Morgoshia, a founder of Alt-Info media company known for spreading disinformation and hate speech, and Zurab Makharadze, an online personality affiliated with Alt-Info accused of inciting violence against minorities and journalists.

These sanctions mark the latest response to the controversial legislation passed in Georgia earlier in the year, which led to mass protests. In July, the Biden administration suspended $95 million in U.S. aid to Georgia, a former Soviet Union territory. The law in question requires media and NGOs to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive over 20% of their funding from abroad, drawing criticism for its resemblance to legislation used by the Kremlin to silence opposition and its potential impact on Georgia’s EU aspirations.