Alt-info, a right-wing, anti-Western group that rose to prominence for leading anti-queer pogroms last year, is now opening offices around the country amid rising anti-Russia sentiment.
While the government has maintained a deeply cautious stance, coverage of the war in the state-controlled media has shown a clear, albeit implicit, pro-Ukraine stance.
Salome Zourabichvili has largely been seen as a ruling party-managed figurehead. But she is lately charting a more independent path, particularly on Ukraine, cheering many of her former detractors.
More than 20,000 Russians have already fled to Georgia in the days since their country launched the invasion of Ukraine. Many Georgians say they are not welcome.
Tbilisi was previously planning to apply in 2024, after further reforms. But domestic political pressure, and apparent positive signals from Brussels, has sped up the process.