Georgia aims to 'reset' relations with U.S. after Washington pauses aid

TBILISI (Reuters) – Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Thursday proposed a “reset” to mend relations with the United States, Interpress news agency reported, after Washington paused more than $95 million in aid over concerns about democratic backsliding.

Georgia was plunged into crisis this spring over the passage of a law on “foreign agents,” which came into force on Thursday.

Opposition politicians and the West say the law, which requires organisations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as “agents of foreign influence”, is authoritarian and will stifle dissent.

“As for Georgian-American relations – we are in a waiting mode. We are fully prepared to reset relationships,” Interpress quoted Kobakhidze as saying.

“You know that in the last three to four years, a lot has gone wrong in these relationships, so the relationship needs a reset. We are absolutely ready for it, the main thing is to see the next steps,” he added.

The ruling Georgian Dream party says the “foreign agents” law is necessary to protect national sovereignty.

The pause on U.S. assistance, which Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Wednesday, is the result of a review of bilateral cooperation that was unveiled in May, along with visa restrictions against some Georgian nationals.

“The Georgian government’s anti-democratic actions and false statements are incompatible with membership norms in the EU and NATO,” Blinken said, adding that Washington would continue to provide some assistance to Georgia, which has historically strong ties to the West.

Kobakhidze on Thursday reiterated government assertions that such restrictions amounted to “blackmail” and discussing additional sanctions against Georgia was “counterproductive”.

“Instead of blackmailing and threatening, we should have a healthy conversation about improving relations, restarting them,” Kobakhidze said.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; editing by Giles Elgood)