Georgian Prime Minister alleges “deep state tactic” of labeling opponents as “pro-Russian”

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Monday asserted that a consistent “deep state tactic” was employed globally to discredit undesirable political forces by branding them “pro-Russian”.

In his interview with Rustavi 2 TV channel, Kobakhidze noted that this campaign in Georgia specifically targeted Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, as early as 2011.

“The campaign, based on the Russian origins of the newly founded public movement, dates back to 2011, before the [Georgian Dream] party was even founded. When Bidzina Ivanishvili announced his entry into politics at the end of 2011, a campaign had been underway since then regarding pro-Russianness, and this is a very simple signature. This is the signature of the deep state”, the Prime Minister said.

“In fact, this signature is unchanged depending on the country, this signature is practically identical. There is a simple label - pro-Russian, and when you want to discredit a political force that you don’t like, you simply stick the pro-Russian label on it, and this happens in different countries. To recall our friend Viktor Orbán [Hungarian Prime Minister], he is also referred to as a pro-Russian politician, and there are no signs of pro-Russianism in Hungary, nor any other terms that are used against Viktor Orbán, such as dictator, etc”, he concluded.