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Ex-Georgian Prosecutor General Leads Russian Unit Against Ukraine
Former Georgian Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze is leading a volunteer combat unit fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, Russian state news agency TASS reported, describing him as a commander of the "Georgievsk" unit.
Partskhaladze, a former close associate of Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, reportedly holds Russian citizenship and has in recent years used the surname Romanov-Partskhaladze.
A photograph posted on Telegram by pro-Kremlin figure Mamuka Pipia shows Partskhaladze in military uniform bearing the name "Romanov," with a Russian flag behind him.
"It was precisely Russian Mikhail Yegorov and Georgian Meliton Kantaria who raised the Victory Flag over the Reichstag in 1945," TASS quoted Partskhaladze as saying. "One in every four of my compatriots fought for freedom. I am certain that, just as then, the symbol of the enemy's defeat will once again be raised by a Russian and a Georgian."
Partskhaladze said the unit was named after the 1783 Treaty of Georgievsk, under which the eastern Georgian kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti came under Russian protection before its eventual annexation by the Russian Empire.
TASS also quoted him as saying he had voluntarily joined Russia's war effort and that he and his team had been "actively assisting Russian servicemen as well as civilians" in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine and several Russian regions.
Partskhaladze served as Georgia's prosecutor general for less than two months in late 2013 before resigning amid questions over his academic credentials and reports of a previous criminal record.
The United States sanctioned him in 2023 over alleged links to Russia's Federal Security Service, or FSB, while Britain sanctioned him in 2025 over his support for Russia's war in Ukraine.
He has since faced several investigations in Georgia, including allegations that he orchestrated the contract killing of businessman Levan Jangveladze.
Courtney Austrian Named U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Georgia
Courtney Austrian has assumed the post of U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Georgia, replacing Amy Diaz, the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi said on September 8.
Diaz, who had served as Chargé d'Affaires since July 30, will return to her position as Deputy Chief of Mission. The U.S. ambassador post has been vacant since Robin Dunnigan left in July 2025.
Austrian is a career U.S. diplomat who has worked on European and Eurasian affairs at the State Department and served in diplomatic posts in Georgia, Ukraine, Russia and the United Kingdom. She has also served as Deputy Chief of Mission to the U.S. mission to the OSCE.
Her appointment comes as Washington and Tbilisi seek to rebuild ties after a prolonged period of tensions. The Georgian Dream government has called for a reset in relations and the restoration of the two countries' strategic partnership.
On her first day in the post, Austrian met Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili, with the sides discussing bilateral relations and prospects for further cooperation.
"The sides expressed their readiness to deepen relations," Georgia's Foreign Ministry said.
