Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Russia-friendly billionaire considered Georgia's most powerful political figure, has refused a meeting with the US ambassador in Tbilisi, which the embassy said was requested to deliver a message from the Trump administration.
The US Embassy said in a statement on its website on May 28 that Secretary of State Marco Rubio requested the meeting on May 22 "to communicate a message from the Administration and to again relay specific steps the Georgian government can take to show it is serious about resetting its relationship with the United States."
The statement added that Ivanishvili, the honorary chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, had "refused" to meet with Ambassador Robin Dunnigan.
Ivanishvili, who is under US sanctions, confirmed the meeting was requested.
But he said he refused, as he has done in the past, because he considers it wrong to "meet with the ambassador and discuss state affairs" given what he calls the "personal blackmail" he faces as the sanctions keep him from receiving money he won in a court dispute with Credit Suisse in Singapore without special permission.
Georgia, once a closer US ally, has angered Washington and the European Union with its perceived tilt toward Russia and its violent crackdown on dissent in the Caucasus nation.
The country received EU candidate status in December 2023, but ties with Brussels have been tense following the adoption in May 2024 of a controversial "foreign agent" law pushed through parliament by Georgian Dream, which has been in power since 2012.
Adding to tensions, police in Tbilisi clashed with pro-Western protesters after elections, detaining dozens and injuring scores of people who accuse the government of the Georgian Dream party of moving the country away from the EU and closer to Moscow.
The political crisis erupted after Georgian Dream claimed victory in October parliamentary elections that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said was marred by instances of vote-buying, double-voting, physical violence, and intimidation.
The US sanctions were imposed in December as Brussels and Washington watched to see whether Georgian officials would intensify their tilt toward Moscow, return to the pro-Europe path, or remain in an environment of unrest and uncertainty.
In the May 28 statement, the US Embassy again addressed the strained ties, saying it hopes the Georgian government "sincerely wishes to return to 33 years of partnership and friendship with America and the American people."
Forbes estimates Ivanishvili's fortune at around $2.5 billion as of May 28, much of it coming through metals, banking, and telecom assets in Russia during the 1990s.
