Students are protesting that they can’t afford to return to the capital to resume their studies in person because rents have gotten so high, a trend many blame on the recent Russian influx.
Azerbaijan blocked a Russian state news agency after it published pro-Armenian articles; now Moscow is hitting back, threatening Azerbaijani state media for being pro-Ukraine.
Workers at Georgia’s iconic mineral water works haven’t been paid, and dozens were laid off, since the company’s Russian owners fell under American and European sanctions.
The territory’s outgoing leader says the vote will take place in July. But he’ll be out of office by then and neither his successor, nor Russia itself, appear as interested in it as he is.
Many outsiders have been calling on Georgia to take advantage of Russian weakness to reclaim its lost territories. But Georgians themselves aren’t having it.
While Anatoliy Bibilov tried to boost his electoral chances by tying himself more tightly to Russia, analysts say his defeat will still not likely result in any substantial change in relations with Moscow.