Prepared by Messenger Staff
State Security Service Denies Reports of Russian Military Terminals in Georgia
The State Security Service of Georgia has dismissed claims that Russian Armed Forces operate secure communication networks on Georgian territory, calling the reports inaccurate and misleading.
The Service said it has received no information from Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service indicating such networks exist in Georgia. According to the Ukrainian statement, Russian networks were only identified near Ukraine's front lines and in Africa. A photo accompanying the statement, however, may have led some to mistakenly believe it referred to Georgia.
"Since yesterday, various media platforms and activists have spread false information suggesting Ukrainian intelligence identified Russian networks in Georgia. None of these outlets contacted the Security Service before publishing," the statement said.
The Service added that it is investigating how the material was misrepresented and warned that the misinformation allowed certain groups in Georgia to "conduct a false and anti-state campaign."
UNM Chair Calls on Constitutional Court to Reject Bid to Ban Opposition Parties
United National Movement chair Tina Bokuchava has urged the judges of Georgia's Constitutional Court to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to outlaw three opposition parties, calling the case politically driven and legally unsupported.
At a briefing, Bokuchava said the claim filed by 88 members of parliament aligned with Georgian Dream does not meet basic evidentiary standards. "We appeal to the judges of the Constitutional Court not to accept this shameful lawsuit and to declare it inadmissible," she said. "It is totally unfounded, fails to meet the minimum standard of proof, and has no real connection to the Constitution."
She argued that the case aims to "destroy democratic order in Georgia and establish a one-party system," adding that its only cited evidence comes from what she called an illegitimate parliamentary commission. Bokuchava said the commission was created to "rewrite Georgia's recent history according to the Russian version" and to "suppress pluralist democracy."
Bokuchava warned that if the lawsuit is admitted, the party will request an oral hearing. "If the judges lack the courage or professional dignity to declare this lawsuit inadmissible, we demand that the session not be held without an oral hearing so we can present our position and that of our hundreds of thousands of supporters," she said.
Eighty-eight MPs have asked the court to ban the United National Movement, the Coalition for Change, and Strong Georgia. The lawsuit argues that the Constitution prohibits parties whose goals involve overthrowing the constitutional order, threatening state independence or territorial integrity, promoting violence or war, or inciting national, ethnic, religious, or social hatred. The claim states that such intent may be identified through a party's statutes, public statements, or actions.
