US, UK sanction Georgia officials over protest crackdown

The US and the UK announced sanctions against senior officials in Georgia's government on Thursday, in repudiation of the country's repression of pro-EU protesters.

The US Treasury said the sanctions will block any interests and property the officials have in the US and bar most financial transactions with them.

"The United States strongly condemns the Georgian authorities' ongoing, brutal and unjustified violence against Georgian citizens, including peaceful protesters, media members, human rights activists and opposition figures," US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy also cited "shocking violence" against protesters, opposition leaders and journalists, calling the authorities' response to the demonstrations "an egregious attack on democracy, and the Georgian people's right to exercise their fundamental freedoms."

"Our action today shows that the UK stands with the people of Georgia and will consider all options to ensure those responsible are held to account."

Protesters in Georgia had taken to the streets to reject the government's decision to postpone a push to join the European Union until 2028, which many in the country see as a move to pull the country closer to Russia.

Georgian lawmakers recently selected a former footballer as president through a controversial election process, a move that the opposition sees as a further blow to the country's European aspirations.

Minister of interior targeted by US, UK

Among the high-ranking officials in the UK's sanctions list was Georgia's Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri.

His deputy Aleksandre Darakhvelidze and Tbilisi Police Department Director Zviad Kharazishvili have also been sanctioned, along with two other high-ranking police chiefs.      

Gomelauri has also been slapped with sanctions by the US, along with Mirza Kezevadze, a senior member of a task force involved in the crackdown on protesters.

Several countries have already imposed sanctions against major figures in Georgia's government, led by the Georgian Dream party, which is seen as close to Russia.

jcg/msh (AFP, Reuters)