The Process of Democratic Regression in Georgia: The Problem of Foreign Policy Positioning of the State

Abstract

This study focuses on the process of democratic regression in Georgia as a complex phenomenon that combines the domestic political erosion of democratic institutions with the transformation of foreign policy positioning of a state as a key actor in international relations. The relevance of the topic is determined by the fact that, after the Rose Revolution, Georgia was for a long time regarded as a successful example of pro-Western democratisation in the post-Soviet space; however, over the last decade, especially after the beginning of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, its political trajectory has undergone significant changes. The study focuses on the strengthening of control over civil society, pressure on independent media, the shrinking space for the opposition, the adoption of legislation on ‘foreign influence’, and the de facto weakening of the European integration impulse which directly affects Georgia’s foreign policy positioning.

The aim of the article is to provide a comprehensive theoretical and applied substantiation of the process of Georgia’s democratic regression as a factor in the transformation of its foreign policy positioning under the conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, intensified geopolitical competition in the South Caucasus, and the crisis of the European normative policy toward the states of the Eastern Partnership. The methodological basis of the study consists of institutional, constructivist, historical and comparative, discursive, and systemic approaches, as well as the case study method, the method of document analysis, and the methods of generalisation and synthesis.

The study substantiates that the current policy of the Georgian Dream creates a contradiction between the formally preserved European and Euro-Atlantic courses and the actual practice of de-Europeanisation, authoritarian consolidation, and the state’s approximation to the Russian model of political governance. It is demonstrated that the Russian factor in Georgian politics performs security-related, discursive, and instrumental functions, while the pro-Russian drift of the Georgian authorities does not eliminate societal agency which remains an important resource of the country’s democratic resilience. The article concludes that the Georgian case demonstrates the interdependence of democracy, security, foreign policy subjectivity, and international trust which directly influence the determination of Georgia’s place and role on the global political arena.