Georgia’s Prime Minister Calls for President to Step Down

The political tension in Georgia deepened on Sunday, as Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili called for President Salome Zourabichvili to step down when her term ends later this month, despite her defiance of the request.

Zourabichvili, who has served as president since 2018, rejected the calls to resign, stating on Saturday that she would remain in office as the newly-elected parliament was illegitimate and lacked the authority to choose her successor.

The dispute comes amid growing political turmoil in the small Caucasus nation, which sits at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, with a population of 3.8 million.

The crisis escalated after the ruling Georgian Dream party announced on Thursday that it would suspend its EU accession talks for the next four years, a move that has drawn widespread international criticism.

Garibashvili dismissed the decision by the United States to suspend its strategic partnership with Georgia, calling it a “temporary event” and saying that Georgia would continue to engage with the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump when he assumes office in January.

He also accused opponents of halting EU accession talks of planning a revolution, drawing comparisons to the 2014 Euromaidan protests in Ukraine, which ultimately led to a shift in government and a closer alignment with the West.