In Georgia, people worry about ending up like Ukraine as government leans towards Russia
Levan is sitting in his very old car smiling at us through the snow, his eyes twinkling, amused by our discomfort. Not many people come to visit this corner of Georgia, and today the snow is billowing around us.
It is biting cold and there is a large stray dog staring at us with a slight air of menace. Welcome to Brotsleti.
We are just a few kilometres from one of the most significant borders in continental Europe. Along the road is a heavily fortified checkpoint that protects the entrance to South Ossetia, the Georgian region that was annexed by Russia 16 years ago.
Russian tanks rolled through this small village; missiles landed; troops marched in.
Over the course of five days of one-sided conflict, the Russians took control, established borders and claimed that South Ossetia had become a newly independent republic.
Hardly anyone else actually believes that, not least because there are still thousands of Russian troops stationed in South Ossetia, quietly intimidating the Georgians on the other side of the frontier.
Levan has lived here for all his 67 years, and he has the weather-beaten face to go along with a tough life. He calls himself a peasant and tells me his car, a Volga, is 63 years old.
It was left to him by his father and Levan uses it every day. It should be in a museum; instead, here it is, pounding away through the snow and potholes, still in one magnolia piece.
Levan, 67, a Georgian who describes hearing gunshots near the border with a region annexed by Russia
“There used to be 25 villages beyond here,” he says, waving in the direction of the border. “Now they’re gone. The money from those 25 villages used to circulate here.”
He looks around at the meagre cluster of shops around us and shrugs. “You always hear gunshots. They hold military exercises in what used to be Georgian villages. There’s a firing range and they shoot there.
“There has not been an incident where they fired from there to here, but you still have a feeling of fear.”
We drive up to the border and see the crossing point. It is a hefty collection of fortified buildings and camouflage, but no sooner have we approached than we are approached by a guard and told to turn around. A police car then starts following us around. Nerves are fraught in this area.
A Georgian flag flying in the town of Gori
So much has changed in the years since Russia invaded, but now Georgia finds itself back in a state of flux.
For a long time, fearful of more Russian aggression, the country was pushed along by a wave of support for joining the EU and NATO. Polling suggests that most Georgians still want to pursue that.
But now the ruling party has gone cold on the idea.
Georgian Dream was created and then bankrolled by a multi-billionaire called Bidzina Ivanishvili who made his money in Russia and is, by a spectacularly wide margin, the richest man in Georgia. His party has been in charge for the past 12 years and has decided that closer ties with the West are no longer a good idea.
A market stall in Tbilisi, Georgia
Instead, Georgian Dream first introduced a “foreign agents” law that looks remarkably similar to oppressive legislation introduced in Russia. The party then won a general election that was widely criticised as rigged by international observers, European countries and Georgia’s president. It has now postponed all negotiations over joining the EU.
“It’s clear that the current Georgian leadership, the rhetoric that they are using, the choices that they make, is leaning towards Russia,” says Olesya Vartanyan, an expert on security and conflicts in the region.
“It became more obvious with the start of the Ukraine war when Georgia took the decision not to join some of the sanctions that the West imposed on Russia.
“Even more, Georgia did everything possible to distance itself from the West and, in that way, it took the side of Russia. I think that the interests of Russia and Georgian Dream do coincide.”
Protests have become a regular sight outside the Georgian parliament.
Anger, especially among more liberal voters in Tbilisi, has boiled over. We saw many anti-Russian slogans daubed on many walls and spoke to plenty of people who thought that the new government is taking orders from Moscow. Opposition parties have all boycotted the new parliament.
Protests in Georgia
But there are others who think it is a fool’s errand to provoke Russia by flirting with closer ties to the West.
Their logic was inflamed by posters created by Georgian Dream during the election, showing pictures of devastation in Ukraine alongside the suggestion that it could be Georgia next.
“We move towards Europe, and Russia threatens us with bombing; we move towards Russia, and Europe threatens us with ‘we won’t feed you, we won’t help you’,” says Marina Bachia, who runs a market stall in the capital.
“We are just a tiny nation,” Marina adds. “Whoever can help us, they should. But nobody cares.”
A police officer has been injured after a night of violent protests outside an asylum hotel in Dublin – with six arrests made.
Bricks were thrown and fireworks were discharged outside the Citywest Hotel – with glass bottles used as missiles and a police van set on fire.
A Garda helicopter was also targeted with lasers, and the police service says some of those on the streets were seen carrying garden forks.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Commissioner Justin Kelly added: “This was obviously not a peaceful protest. The actions this evening can only be described as thuggery. This was a mob intent on violence.
“We will now begin the process of identifying those who committed crimes and we will bring those involved in this violence to justice.”
It is the second night of demonstrations after an alleged sexual assault in its vicinity in the early hours of Monday morning.
Some of the crowd threw stones and other missiles at the public order officers as they moved the protesters back – and water cannon was deployed at the scene.
A line of officers was preventing the protesters from approaching the hotel.
Police officers block protesters outside the hotel. Pic: PA
‘Those involved will be brought to justice’
Ireland’s premier, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, paid tribute to the officers who were on the frontline of the protests.
“There can be no justification for the vile abuse against them, or the attempted assaults and attacks on members of the force that will shock all right-thinking people,” he said.
Justice minister Jim O’Callaghan said those involved in the violence will be brought to justice.
“The scenes of public disorder we have witnessed at Citywest must be condemned,” he said.
“People threw missiles at Gardai, threw fireworks at them and set a Garda vehicle on fire.
“This is unacceptable and will result in a forceful response from the Gardai.
“Those involved will be brought to justice.”
‘No excuse’ for violence
The minister said a man had been arrested and had appeared in court in relation to the alleged assault in the vicinity of the hotel.
He added: “While I am not in a position to comment any further on this criminal investigation, I have been advised that there is no ongoing threat to public safety in the area.”
He said attacks on officers would “not be tolerated”, adding: “Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of our democracy. Violence is not.
“There is no excuse for the scenes we have witnessed.”
The demonstration on Monday night passed without a significant incident.
It comes two years after anti-immigrant demonstrators triggered a major riot in the centre of Dublin after three young children were stabbed.
A police van has been set on fire and missiles have been thrown at officers as protesters gathered outside a hotel used to house asylum seekers in Dublin.
It is the second night of demonstrations outside the Citywest Hotel after an alleged sexual assault in its vicinity in the early hours of Monday morning.
A large crowd has gathered in the area and members of the Garda’s public order unit have been deployed.
Footage from the scene showed a Garda vehicle on fire as well as several protesters displaying Irish flags.
Many protesters carried Republic of Ireland flags
Some of the crowd threw stones and other missiles at the public order officers as they moved the protesters back.
A Garda helicopter hovered overhead and a water cannon was deployed on the scene.
Ireland’s justice minister, Jim O’Callaghan, said those involved will be brought to justice.
“The scenes of public disorder we have witnessed at Citywest tonight must be condemned,” he said.
“People threw missiles at Gardai, threw fireworks at them and set a Garda vehicle on fire.
“This is unacceptable and will result in a forceful response from the Gardai.
“Those involved will be brought to justice.”
The minister said a man had been arrested and had appeared in court in relation to the alleged assault in the vicinity of the hotel.
He added: “While I am not in a position to comment any further on this criminal investigation, I have been advised that there is no ongoing threat to public safety in the area.
He said attacks on gardai will “not be tolerated”, adding: “Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of our democracy. Violence is not.
“There is no excuse for the scenes we have witnessed tonight.”
It was the second night of protest outside the hotel, which is being used as state accommodation for people seeking international protection. The demonstration on Monday night passed without a significant incident.
It comes two years after anti-immigrant demonstrators triggered a major riot in the centre of Dublin after three young children were stabbed.
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There are no plans for Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to meet in person in the near future, according to a White House official.
The presidents last week agreed to meet in Budapest after a phone call Mr Trump called “extremely frank and trustful”.
The US leader suggested it was possible it could happen within a fortnight, though no date was set.
However, it appears that’s now off the table – and there are fears the meeting could be shelved altogether due to Russia‘s rigid stance on the Ukraine war.
The White House official, speaking to Sky’s US partner network NBC, said secretary of state Marco Rubio and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov had spoken on Tuesday.
The call was described as “productive” but the official added there was no plan for the presidents to meet “in the immediate future”.
The last Trump-Putin meeting was in Alaska in August, but it ended without any meaningful progress towards a ceasefire.
The Budapest plan was announced shortly before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy travelled to Washington last Friday to try to get approval for long-range Tomahawk missiles.
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Why Tomahawks are off the table
Mr Zelenskyy accused the Russian leader of acting out of fear Ukraine could get the green light and the ability to hit targets far deeper into Russia.
In his nightly address on Tuesday, he said Russia “almost automatically became less interested in diplomacy” after it became clear Mr Trump had backed away from any decision on the Tomahawks.
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Professor Michael Clarke answers your questions on the Ukraine war.
Two US officials told Reuters that plans for the Budapest meeting had stalled over Russia’s insistence any peace deal must give it control of all of the Donbas region.
Those terms are said to have been reiterated over the weekend in a private communique known as a “no paper”.
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The Kremlin’s refusal to budge effectively rejects Mr Trump’s latest assessment that the frontlines should be frozen as they are.
The president shifted position last week after previously telling the UN General Assembly that Ukraine could win back all the land it has lost.
Read more:
Putin’s ‘not so secret weapon’ | Ukraine war Q&A
UK ‘ready to spend over £100m’ on possibly sending troops to Ukraine
Ukraine and European nations issued a joint statement on Tuesday insisting “international borders must not be changed by force” and accusing Russia of “stalling tactics”.
But, in an apparent effort to keep the US leader onside, it added: “We strongly support President Trump’s position that the fighting should stop immediately, and that the current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations.”
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Trump: ‘We can end this war quickly’
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov gave the impression his country was in no rush to arrange another Trump-Putin meeting, saying on Tuesday “preparation is needed, serious preparation”.
Such talk is likely to increase concerns Russia does not want to stop fighting and is “playing” President Trump – all while continuing to launch drone barrages at Ukrainian cities.
Russia currently holds about a fifth of Ukraine after its invasion in February in 2022. It also annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
Meanwhile, NATO’s secretary general Mark Rutte is travelling to Washington to meet with President Trump on Wednesday.
He will “discuss various aspects related to NATO’s support to Ukraine and to the US-led efforts towards lasting peace”, an official for the alliance said.
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