Bidzina Ivanishvili Ranked 8th Among Europe's Disrupters in POLITICO's Annual List
By Liza Mchedlidze
Thursday, November 30, 2023
POLITICO has released its yearly ranking of influential figures in Europe, categorizing them into three sections: The Doers, Disrupters, and Dreamers. Among these, Georgian former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili has been recognized as a Disrupter, securing the 8th position in the list.
According to a Politico article, Bidzina Ivanishvili, despite officially stepping back from politics to live a simpler life at a dendrological park on the Black Sea, is suspected of still influencing the ruling Georgian Dream party he founded. With an estimated wealth equivalent to a third of Georgia's GDP, Ivanishvili is allegedly steering the party towards closer ties with Russia, aiming to move away from the EU and towards Moscow. Critics argue that this shift has been evident since Russia's war in Ukraine, with Georgia refusing to impose sanctions on Russia.
Despite a majority of Georgians supporting EU membership, concerns are raised about the country's democratic mechanisms and human rights backsliding under Ivanishvili's influence, especially as Brussels considers Georgia's membership application. The article suggests that Ivanishvili's decisions may impact Georgia's path toward EU integration in 2024.
"If you believe Georgia's former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, he has quit politics to dedicate himself to living the simple life at a dendrological park on the Black Sea. But Georgia's richest man (whose estimated wealth is around a third of the country's GDP) is widely known to be pulling the strings of the ruling Georgian Dream party he founded. His goal: to push Tbilisi out of the EU's waiting room and into the Kremlin's clutches.
Ivanishvili, born into poverty in a Georgian village, moved to Moscow to obtain a Ph.D. in economics, built an astronomical fortune in the 1990s in banking, metals, real estate, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture, and then returned home to found the Georgian Dream. He briefly served as the country's prime minister, before quitting that post in 2013 - while continuing to run the show, without needing to stand for pesky elections or be accountable or checked by any democratic mechanisms. Rumor has it the 67-year-old ultimately answers to Russia, where he built his fortune alongside its many other oligarchs.
In the past year, Georgia has refused to impose sanctions on Russia, with Moscow dropping a ban on direct flights ferrying Russian holidaymakers to the South Caucasus country. Tbilisi even launched an ill-fated impeachment of its own president for her friendly trips to EU capitals.
According to analysts, Ivanishvili is largely responsible for Georgia's pro-Moscow pivot since the start of Russia's war in Ukraine. Despite a fifth of Georgian territory being occupied by the Kremlin's forces and their proxies in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the country has become a key hub for sanctions-busting parallel exports to Russia. At the same time, observers warn Tbilisi is backsliding on human rights, the rule of law, and democracy - at the very moment Brussels is considering its long-standing membership application.
Still, a large majority of Georgians back EU membership and want to see their country turn Westward. After Brussels set out the 12 recommendations the country needs to take in order to gain entry to the bloc back in June 2022, Tbilisi has a clear path to follow in 2024 if it wants to make headway in entry negotiations. The question is whether Ivanishvili will let it," the article reads.
