Prosecutor General Giorgi Gvarakidze made this announcement during a briefing at the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office.Liluashvili faces charges relating to multiple episodes, including bribery, so-called call centres, and procurement contracts at the nursery management agency.“As a result of joint operational and investigative efforts conducted by the Prosecutor General’s Office of Georgia and the State Security Service, the former head of the State Security Service, Grigol Liluashvili, has been arrested. He is currently under investigation for bribery in several criminal cases.First episode: In October 2022, through the then-First Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Romeo Mikautadze, he accepted a bribe of one million US dollars from Turkish investor Çağatay Ülker, to lobby on his behalf for the execution of a memorandum of cooperation related to the construction of wind power stations.Second episode: In February 2022, again through Romeo Mikautadze, he demanded and extorted one million five hundred thousand Georgian lari from Giorgi Khazhalia, founder of the company ‘Expressservice 2008’, in exchange for assistance with gasification tenders.Third episode: This concerns the period between 2021 and 2023, when, despite the government’s declared legal battle in this direction, several dozen fraudulent call centres continued to operate in the country. According to witness testimony, the vast majority of these call centres belonged to a group of individuals who used the proceeds to finance various opposition media outlets, whilst a relatively small portion of the call centres operated under the primary protection of Grigol Liluashvili, who conducted this activity through his relative, Sandro Liluashvili.As a result of this criminal activity, Grigol Liluashvili received approximately USD 1,365,000 in bribes through the intermediary Sandro Liluashvili.We also inform the public that, based on these factual circumstances, the investigation is working intensively, alongside gathering evidence against other individuals involved in the criminal scheme, on a theory according to which Grigol Liluashvili, together with other co-conspirators, ensured that the existence of fraudulent call centres financing opposition media was not exposed, whilst the opposition media, for their part, did not report information about the existence of fraudulent call centres under Liluashvili’s protection, despite possessing this information.Fourth episode: Grigol Liluashvili, exploiting his official position, protected his friend, Kakha Gvantseladze, the former director of Tbilisi City Hall’s Nursery Management Agency, in exchange for bribes, who received exceptionally large sums of money in the form of bribes, so-called kickbacks, from business entities in the execution of procurement contracts for nurseries.In the aforementioned criminal scheme involving Liluashvili and Gvantseladze, Kakha Gvantseladze involved employees from the agency’s financial accounting and settlement division, as well as monitoring staff. Resolutions have been issued to hold all of them accountable as defendants in criminal proceedings.Hundreds of investigative actions have been conducted in the criminal case, including interrogation with witnesses whose testimony confirms the commission of crimes by Grigol Liluashvili and others. Various pieces of evidence substantiating the crimes have also been obtained, including video and audio recordings,” Giorgi Gvarakidze stated.According to the Prosecutor General, Grigol Liluashvili is charged under Article 338, Part 2, Subparagraph ‘g’ and Part 3, Subparagraph ‘e’ of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which refers to bribery by a group acting with prior agreement and on an exceptionally large scale, carrying a sentence of 11 to 15 years’ imprisonment.

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"We urge the government to rethink this educationally harmful proposal and to engage with allstakeholders in Georgia’s higher educational system" - This is stated in the letter from foreign professors to Irakli Kobakhidze, Prime Minister of Georgia."On October 16, you announced a National Reform Concept for Higher Education, consisting of seven major components. In this document and in your speech, you and your government assure Georgian citizens that the National Reform Concept will improve efficiency and quality in Georgian higher education and promote equal access for students. We agree there are longstanding problems in the Georgian higher educational system: universities and institutes are nder-resourced (in 2025, Georgian government spending on higher education was 0.3% of GDP); faculty are underpaid, working two to three jobs to feed their families; government supported research and scientific laboratories have become practically non-existent; and unemployment among university graduates stimulates a massive out-migration abroad every year.The measures you propose in the National Reform Concept for Higher Education will not solve any of these problems. Rather, they will increase government control over the higher educational sector. Management will be placed in the hands of rectors and administrators beholden to the government. University autonomy, and with it, faculty control over academic programs and curricula will be severely weakened. University budgets will be reduced even further, and the removal of dissenting faculty will become easier as part of the reorganization. The “reform” will close the last sphere in Georgia which is open to healthy dissent. A well-functioning university system which incorporates critical thinking, selfgovernment, academic freedom, well-funded research opportunities, and international exchange is vital to growing the Georgian national economy. Without universities where information is freely shared and research freely pursued, the Georgian economy will not thrive.We are international scholars from universities around the world. We are concerned about other measures undertaken by your government which have led to the imprisonment of faculty and students for peacefully defending their rights. Your proposed National Reform Concept for Higher Education will not only nullify Georgia’s democratic progress but will limit the prospects of your citizens, who you were elected to represent. Higher education provides the state with engaged citizens and professionals, who along with working people, will ensure the country’s survival and prosperity in an increasingly competitive global order.We urge the government to rethink this educationally harmful proposal and to engage with all stakeholders in Georgia’s higher educational system to create a genuine reform that will improve the lives of Georgian citizens and those of their children", - It is stated in the letter signed by:1. Professor Stephen Jones, Davis Center, Harvard University2. Professor Ronald Suny (Emeritus), University of Michigan, University of Chicago3. Professor Erik R. Scott, University of Kansas4. Prof. Dr. Hubertus Jahn (Emeritus), University of Cambridge5. Professor Catriona Kelly FBA, Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College, University of Cambridge6. Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer, Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies, Regensburg (Germany)7. Professor Kelly O'Neill, Harvard University8. Professor Roy Allison, St. Antony's College, University of Oxford9. Professor Donald Rayfield (Emeritus), Queen Mary College, University of London10. Professor Stephen Neil MacFarlane (Emeritus), University of Oxford11. Lincoln Mitchell, Columbia University12. Professor Florian Mühlfried, Ilia State University13. Professor Paul Manning, Trent University, Canada14. Professor Maia Chankseliani, University of Oxford15. Professor Charles Urjewicz (Emeritus) (INALCO, Paris, France)16. Professor Oliver Reisner, Ilia State University Tbilisi17. Professor Michael Rochlitz, University of Oxford /Director of the Oxford Georgia Programme18. Dr Alexander Morrison, Fellow and Tutor in History, New College, Oxford19. Professor Jeremy Smith, University of Eastern Finland20. Professor Guido Hausmann, Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies21. Professor Edmund Herzig, Professor of Persian Studies, University of Oxford22. Professor Bruce Grant, New York University23. Professor Jonathan Wheatley, Oxford Brookes University24. Professor Mirja Lecke, University of Regensburg, Germany25. Ambassador William Courtney (US, Retired)26. Ambassador Kenneth Yalowitz (US, Retired)27. Professor Timothy Blauvelt, Ilia State University28. Professor Julie George, CUNY and Columbia University29. Professor Robert Kindler, Freie Universität Berlin30. Prof. Dr. Theocharis Grigoriadis, Freie Universität Berlin31. Dr Tamara Dragadze, Visiting Professor, University of Westminster32. Professor Michael David-Fox, Director, Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University33. Dr Michel Abeßer, Assistant Professor, University of Freiburg, Germany34. Prof. Dr. Stefan Applis (Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg)35. Prof. Dr. Matthias Theodor Vogt, Dr. h.c. (Pécs University), Dr. h.c. (Ilia State University Tbilisi), Director Institut für kulturelle Infrastruktur Sachsen36. Dr Michael H. Cecire, Affiliated Scholar, Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies, Georgetown University37. Professor Dan Healey (Emeritus), University of Oxford38. PD. Dr. Kirsten Bönker, Nordost-Institut an der Universität Hamburg39. Professor Anne Meneley, Trent University40. Prof. Dr. Susanne Frank, Humboldt University of Berlin41. Prof. Dr. Riccardo Nicolosi, LMU University Munich42. Dr Riccardo Mario Cucciolla (University of Naples l'Orientale, Naples, Italy)43. Professor Alex Krouglov, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)44. Lesia Rubashova, Assoc. Professor, Research and Educational Center of Foreign Languages, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine45. Dr Rasmus Nilsson, Lecturer, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)46. Dr Peter Braga, Lecturer, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)47. Prof. Dr. Thomas Ertl, Freie Universitaet, Berlin48. Prof. Dr. Marc Junge, University of Erlangen, Germany, department for Eastern European history49. Professor Pamela Davidson, Russian literature, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)50. Dr. Philipp Christoph Schmädeke CEO Akademisches Netzwerk Osteuropa, aknoe.V., Director SCIENCE AT RISK Emergency Office51. Professor Richard Mole, Political Sociology, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)52. Olivia Bailey, language coordinator, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)53. Dr Jessie Barton Hronesova, Lecturer, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)54. Dr Jakub Beneš, UCL SSEES (University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies)55. Prof. Dr. F. Benjamin Schenk (University of Basel)56. Professor Katie Campbell, King's College, University of Cambridge57. Professor Anke Hilbrenner, Institute for Historical Sciences, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany58. Megi Kartsivadze, University College London59. Dr Hans Gutbrod, Ilia State University60. Professor Riccardo Nicolosi, LMU University Munich61. Dr. Mike Loader, University of Glasgow, UK62. Dr Yuliya Yurchuk, Assistant Professor, Södertörn University, Sweden63. Professor Antoon de Baets, em. University of Groningen (The Netherlands)64. Professor Gesine Drews-Sylla, Neuphilologisches Institut - Slavistik, Julius-Maximilians Universität Würzburg65. Dr Abraham Florin, Associate Professor in Political Science at the Faculty of Communication of the National University of Political Science and Public Administration, Bucharest

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"We have initiated and facilitated discussions, thereby confirming our commitment to promoting a more stable and cooperative regional environment," the head of government said.According to Kobakhidze, the country continues to develop steadily and maintains macroeconomic stability, achieves impressive growth and demonstrates exceptional economic resilience.Georgia has maintained a stable trend of economic growth for several consecutive years. Between 2021 and 2024, Georgia recorded one of the highest economic growth rates in the world - an average of 9.8%. GDP per capita in USD has more than doubled compared to 2020. High economic growth is expected to continue in the coming years, a forecast supported by assessments from reputable international financial institutions," added Irakli Kobakhidze.In his remarks, the Head of Government of Georgia also highlighted the importance of the Middle Corridor and Georgia's role in promoting regional cooperation."Given the positive economic momentum, Georgia actively promotes regional cooperation, building both physical and diplomatic bridges across the region. The Middle Corridor, connecting Asia and Europe, is a central element of this vision. It is designed not only to facilitate trade, but also to strengthen mutual economic interdependence - the most durable foundation of trust among nations.Indeed, the Middle Corridor is more than a transport route; it is a corridor of trust, connecting people, businesses and cultures across the continent. Guided by a firm commitment to peaceful policy, we strive to contribute to regional stability by offering a neutral and reliable space for dialogue in the South Caucasus. We have initiated and supported discussions aimed at reducing tensions and establishing communication channels among neighbors, reaffirming our commitment to fostering a more stable and cooperation-oriented regional environment.Georgia remains fully committed to partnering with others to transform the ideals of the International Year of Peace and Trust into tangible and lasting progress. We believe that a sustainable future requires both dialogue and action, and that our shared goals rest on joint efforts. Together, we can create a safer, more stable and sustainable future for generations to come," concluded the Prime Minister of Georgia.The global forum dedicated to the International Year of Peace and Trust was opened by Serdar Berdimuhamedov, President of Turkmenistan.

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“It is outrageous that the husband of the GD regime appointed ambassador to U.S. is reportedly helping Russia to evade U.S. sanctions meant to cripple Putin’s war machine. US Treasury should look into this, and I look forward to following up,” Wilson wrote.The statement follows a report by OC-Media, which claims that David Kukhalashvili, husband of Ambassador Tamar Taliashvili, is the founder and managing director of a Moscow-based law firm advising clients on avoiding sanctions and asset freezes imposed by the US and European Union.

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The case concerns the June 20-21, 2019 protests in Georgia following the visit of Russian State Duma deputy Sergei Gavrilov, who chaired a session in the Georgian Parliament. During the protests, riot police used tear gas and rubber bullets, injuring several hundred demonstrators, including 38 journalists, with some losing their eyesight. Several participants were also arrested for alleged involvement in violence.The Grand Chamber ruled unanimously that Georgia violated the procedural aspect of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which obliges states to conduct effective, independent, and timely investigations into alleged torture or inhuman treatment. The Court also found violations of Article 10 (Freedom of Expression) and Article 11 (Freedom of Assembly). The Government’s claim that domestic remedies had been exhausted was rejected.The Court awarded the victims a total of €646,000. The applicants included both ordinary demonstrators and journalists, while the State was ordered to cover €100,000 in legal costs.

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According to him, one of the obstacles hindering the development of the energy system is the debt accumulated by companies over recent years in the form of fines and penalties.“We have made a critically important decision to write off fines and penalties imposed on companies operating in the sector, subject to specific conditions. All energy sector companies involved in developing renewable energy projects will have their accumulated state fines, with the total amount reaching one billion lari, written off under specific conditions.As for the conditions: to ensure companies are not tempted to continue operating irresponsibly and accumulating new fines, but instead take the state’s sector reform initiative seriously, they will be fully liable for any newly accumulated penalties and fines should they breach the renewed deadlines. Moreover, the fines forgiven by today’s decision will be reinstated,” Kobakhidze stated.According to the Prime Minister, the conditional debt relief serves two simultaneous purposes.“On the one hand, companies must have the financial barrier removed in the process of implementing energy projects, and on the other hand, companies must retain maximum motivation to implement planned projects within the grant deadlines. Debt forgiveness should mark the beginning of a new process based on bilateral cooperation, yet imbued with responsibility. This means new agreements, new schedules, and new reasonable mutual obligations between the state and companies. We shall take a strict approach to any new unfulfilled obligations or new debts to the state budget. With our new approach, we are beginning to implement an energy policy that will be acceptable to companies involved in the energy sector and from which the country will derive maximum benefit,” Kobakhidze declared.As Irakli Kobakhidze stated at today’s briefing, today’s decision will provide fresh impetus for the development of the energy system.“Our decision today will provide fresh impetus for the development of the energy system, which is of decisive importance for the country’s economic development and the strengthening of economic independence. I thank Georgia’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mariam Kvrivishvili, and the ministry’s team for preparing this critically important decision. I wish the energy companies success in the process of implementing renewable energy projects,” the Prime Minister stated.

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Azerbaijan media writes that Georgia has demanded a very high tariff for the possible transit of Azerbaijan oil to Armenia.As Baku claims, this contradicts Georgia’s own interests.As Azerbaijan მmedia writes, “Georgia does not have the luxury of ignoring Azerbaijan’s interests,” especially since “Georgia’s logistics monopoly is no longer without alternatives.”Earlier, Azerbaijan media wrote that the Georgian side was artificially hindering the transportation of Azerbaijani cargo through customs.

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“It is important to make the 11th grade, the final grade, specialized. This reflects the goal, which is related, first of all, to returning students to school, increasing the prestige and authority of the school and removing the pressure on families, which is related to financial issues in terms of preparing students for the national exams,” Givi Mikanadze said.In addition, those wishing to study in the 12th grade of public schools will have the opportunity to complete the relevant registration in March of each year. "Starting from the next academic year, school uniforms will be mandatory in all public schools from the first to the sixth grade, in a test mode," Mikanadze added.Socially vulnerable families will receive state support regarding uniforms."All families that are assessed by the Ministry of Health with 60,000 points or less will receive appropriate support from the state regarding uniforms," ​​Mikanadze said.Givi Mikanadze, during the presentation of the general education reform, also stated that "the voucher component of public school financing will be maintained, although we will consider different models that will help eliminate the necessary needs for schools."According to him, the general education reform will fundamentally change the teaching-learning process.In addition, completely new textbooks will be written within two to three years.According to Mikanadze, over the past six months, the ministry has selected groups of experts from various disciplines through a selection procedure.Research organization Gnomon Wise On October 16, 2025 reviewed the education reform. The organization notes, that Irakli Kobakhidze presented a concept for higher education reform that identifies the main challenges in the higher education sector and proposes ways to address them.The challenges include: “1. Excessive geographic concentration of higher education; 2. Irrational use of resources and uneven quality of teaching in the universities; 3. Lack of a coherent Human Resources strategy; 4. Weak link between teaching and research, including a lack of education programs and textbooks of modern standards; 5. Significant mismatch between higher education priorities and labor market needs and 6. Inefficient funding system.”“The higher education reform concept,34 developed by the governmental commission without the involvement of representatives of state universities or education experts, raises a number of questions regarding its true purpose. The concept does not justify the need to implement changes in this manner and, in many cases, instead of improving the quality of higher education institutions, creates additional  problems. If the higher education reform concept is first turned into a draft law and then enacted, Georgia's higher education system will regress decades to a centralized Soviet-era model. The state would control both the form and substance of education, students would be reduced to passive recipients, and academic freedom would be systematically dismantled. If fully implemented, the concept will isolate the Georgian education system from the European academic space and limit students’ ability to obtain internationally recognized, high-quality education”, - Gnomon Wise writes.The reform concept contradicts both Article 27 of the Constitution of Georgia, which guarantees the autonomy of universities, as well as the obligations assumed under the Association Agreement and the principles of the Bologna Process which ensure that universities have the right to determine their own academic profile, educational programs, personnel policy, and research directions. 

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As the statement notes, GD will “use every possible legal means to ensure that the so-called media outlet spreading falsehoods answers for the dissemination of dirty, false accusations”.“This morning, the BBC published an article which, in addition to numerous absurd and false pieces of information, contains an accusation against the Georgian government that the Ministry of Internal Affairs allegedly used a ‘chemical substance’ against violent protesters during illegal rallies. Naturally, this so-called media outlet, which has been turned into a propaganda weapon of the ‘Deep State’, has presented not a single fact to substantiate this grave accusation.Moreover, all speculation is based on the opinions of specific individuals, among them Doctor Chakhunashvili, who is one of the active participants in illegal rallies, whilst his family member, his father, Giorgi Chakhunashvili, personally participated in the October 4 ‘overthrow of the government process’ and physically broke into the courtyard of the Georgian Presidential Palace. Furthermore, the article predominantly features interested parties, Gigauri, the accused Khasaia, the accused Shaishmelashvili, the convicted Bachiashvili and other similar individuals.The Georgian Dream communications team maintained active contact with the ‘investigative journalist’ before the publication of the article. We prepared comprehensive responses to every question posed by the BBC, addressing the British media outlet’s interests meticulously and in detail. Given that in recent times the aforementioned media outlet has become embroiled in more than one scandal, has repeatedly been confirmed to have spread falsehoods, and for this reason even the broadcaster’s top management was replaced, at the beginning of our response we set only two conditions—that our position be covered in full, we offered to provide evidence of every word we sent, whilst in parallel we demanded that, in observance of high journalistic standards, all reasoning presented in the article be based solely on evidence. In return, we were met with a jumble of lies and serious accusations against the government, which, as we have noted, are based on the narratives of interested parties and, of course, bear no relation to reality.It is well known to the public that several weeks ago, the BBC was embroiled in a scandal when the so-called media outlet broadcast a crudely edited interview with U.S. President Donald Trump, in which the context and content of the conversation had been distorted. As a result of this manipulation, the broadcaster’s director-general and executive news director resigned from their positions, though this more resembled rolling out the red carpet for the U.S. President than accepting responsibility for a mistake.That the BBC has no moral or professional obstacles to fulfilling dirty commissions and spreading falsehoods is also clearly evident from today’s published article, whilst the change in their management reminds us of the several changes of prime minister in Britain in recent years, which in that country has been followed not by fundamental change, not even by façade change, and as a result one ‘Deep State’-controlled government has replaced another.Because an outlet once considered authoritative, which today has been turned into a propaganda weapon of informal governance, has publicly spread false accusations against the Georgian government and has not presented even a single piece of evidence in the article to substantiate these accusations; because the so-called ‘journalistic investigation’ built on lies is primarily based on the narratives of criminals and has nothing in common with reality; because the BBC received exhaustive answers to all questions and did not publish even 1% of the substantiated responses in the article; because this dirty propaganda material is an attempt to smear the Georgian government, the Georgian police and, most importantly, Georgian statehood, we have decided to initiate legal proceedings against the fake media outlet in international courts.We will utilise every legal measure available to ensure that the so-called media outlet spreading falsehoods is held accountable for disseminating baseless, malicious accusations.Enclosed, we provide in full the questions supplied by the BBC before the publication of the article, along with the responses we submitted,” reads the Georgian Dream statement.

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The information released by TI states that “in September, the party received donations from those whose companies received GEL 204 million in direct purchases from the state, GEL 16 million in agricultural subsidies, 1.4 million sq m of construction permits, and 17 mineral licenses.”“In addition to winning tenders worth GEL  2.5 billion since 2015, companies affiliated with donors have received a number of other benefits from the state - direct purchases, agricultural subsidies, construction permits and mineral licenses.For more information about donations, as well as information about the donors' business interests and their participation in state procurement, visit the website: www.politicaldonations.ge,” the organization says in a statement.

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