Irakli Pavlenishvili, one of the leaders of the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party, has warned of the threat of Georgia’s Russification due to the uncontrolled and mass influx of Russian citizens into the country. Speaking at a briefing outside Tbilisi International Airport, the politician pledged that following a change of government, Georgia “will be protected from the Russian threat.”
“Tbilisi International Airport has turned into yet another gate to Mordor in Georgia. Representatives of the occupying state are arriving here uncontrollably and en masse from Putin’s Russia—that is, from Mordor. Contrary to what the Russian propaganda of ‘Georgian Dream’ tries to make us believe, a significant portion of these people are not tourists at all.
We are not fighting against tourism or Russian tourists—we are opposing the displacement of Georgian citizens and Georgian businesses in Georgia. Since 2022 alone, up to 40,000 Russian companies have been registered in Georgia. They create even more problems for Georgian small and medium-sized businesses, which are already in a precarious position.”
Pavlenishvili also stated that air travel between Georgia and Russia has never been as intensive as it is today—”even during Soviet times.” According to him, there are reasonable grounds to suspect that in a number of cases, this may involve sanctions evasion.
“For example, flights to Moscow operate several times a day; Georgian Airways alone runs about four flights. Entirely new routes that never existed before are being opened, specifically to Russia’s industrial centers.
Overall, according to the opposition figure, the primary danger is “the prospect of a Georgia without Georgians and the accelerated pace of Russification.”
Another member of the National Movement, Lasha Parulava, stated that former President Mikheil Saakashvili had once transformed Tbilisi Airport into a regional hub, the “main gateway to the Caucasus,” whereas Ivanishvili turned it into the “main gateway for the northern enemy.” According to him, Georgia has become a “crypto-laundromat” for the drug trade and Russian blood money.