Georgian Dream official accuses Kyiv of serving ‘foreign interests’

Dimitri Samkharadze, the ruling Georgian Dream party’s regional secretary, has accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his advisers of acting as “puppets” for foreign powers and spreading disinformation aligned with what he described as an international “war party.”

In a lengthy social media post on Monday, Samkharadze singled out Mykhailo Podolyak - a senior aide to President Zelenskyy - using derogatory language and alleging that Podolyak’s recent public statements mirrored narratives voiced by what he called “foreign agents” in Georgia.

Samkharadze claimed that Zelenskyy “professionally fulfils the tasks of both the Kremlin and European officials,” arguing that neither Russia nor the EU wants a strong Ukraine as a neighbour. He further asserted that the Ukrainian government sacrificed its own citizens while advancing outside interests.

According to Samkharadze, Kyiv’s supposed desire to facilitate the return of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili to Ukraine was “logical,” claiming Ukraine needed Saakashvili’s “experience as a capitulator” - a reference to the 2008 Russia–Georgia war.

He argued that “Zelenskyy’s government was the main example of servility and marionette politics,” characterising it as a “troupe of clowns” undermining Ukraine’s statehood.

Samkharadze contrasted this with what he described as Georgia’s “national, pro-Georgian government,” led by Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili and Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. He insisted that Saakashvili, currently imprisoned in Georgia, will “answer before the Georgian state and people for past crimes”.