This article is part of a partnership with OC Media. You can read the original in English here.
David Tarkhan-Mouravi, the leader of the Georgian political party “Alliance of Patriots” — which has repeatedly advocated for Georgia’s non-aligned status and closer ties with Russia — has claimed that the “US defeated Russia” in a number of areas, including the situation surrounding the parliamentary elections in Armenia. At the same time, he also claimed that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan allegedly rigged the elections.
Tarkhan-Mouravi discussed this topic on his show on the “Obieqtivi” TV channel. Analyzing the economic ties between Armenia and Russia, he claimed that in Armenia, “the absolute majority holds pro-Russian sentiments” and that “90% of Armenian business is connected to Russia.”
He further claimed that Pashinyan “wrote” the election results himself and that he actually received “so few votes” that he would not even dare to “assign himself” a full 50%. However, Tarkhan-Mouravi interpreted the very fact of Pashinyan’s victory — despite the alleged manipulation — as a sign that “America is distancing Armenia from Russia.”
“[This means that] Russia is under pressure from the US and the West from all sides. Whether it is Iran — where Russia has significant influence — or Armenia, which the US is now taking away from it,” he said, adding:
“That is why I say that Georgia is also an American country. Let’s understand: Russia has lost, meaning America is defeating it. It has defeated [Russia] in Venezuela, Libya, Syria, Iran, Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, and once again it has become clear that the US is the most powerful state in the world.”
According to Tarkhan-Mouravi, Georgia should act cautiously, and relations with “Russia, the US, Europe, Turkey, Iran, and China” must be built taking into account that “we have not lost” and “we need to protect our interests everywhere.”
“Therefore, such insults, confrontation, and spitting at America achieve nothing — this will lead us to disaster. We need to analyze this,” he added.
Meanwhile, Pashinyan continued to receive congratulations on the victory of his “Civil Contract” party in the June 7 parliamentary elections, though Russian President Vladimir Putin, notably, has not yet done so. Instead, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that the elections were accompanied by “unprecedented pressure on the opposition” and “unprecedented Western interference.”
The “Alliance of Patriots of Georgia”, founded in 2012, is a national-conservative party led by Tarkhan-Mouravi and Irina Inashvili. The party is known for its calls for Georgia’s neutrality and maintaining dialogue with Russia. Its representatives have repeatedly attended meetings in Moscow.
The party first entered parliament by winning six seats in the 2016 elections, and four seats in 2020.
In the disputed 2024 parliamentary elections, the party ran in a bloc with the far-right, pro-Russian “Conservative Movement” (Konservatiuli Modzraoba) after the latter was deregistered by the authorities. According to official results, they received 2.44% of the vote and failed to clear the electoral threshold.
