US pauses $95M of foreign aid to Georgia after ‘foreign agents’ law

The United States has paused more than $95 million in foreign assistance to Georgia, a move that came after the country’s Parliament began requiring nongovernmental organizations, journalists, and activists to register as “foreign agents” if they receive funding from abroad. “The [Georgian] population wants an open society. They want a democratic country. And their current leaders are moving them in the wrong direction,” U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told Devex. “This is a clear demonstration that we won’t just say, it’s okay, drift towards Russia and our relationship won’t change. It will change.” The multimillion-dollar suspension includes “certain USAID assistance that directly benefits the government of Georgia,” a USAID spokesperson told Devex. The source did not clarify which assistance would be halted in particular, but USAID contributes more to this Eastern European country than all other U.S. institutions combined. “In some cases, assistance programs may be modified to redirect resources to nongovernment entities working in a given sector,” the USAID spokesperson told Devex. “We will continue programming that directly supports the Georgian people, including to students, businesses, farmers, Georgian communities — including rural communities — civil society, marginalized communities, and independent media.” USAID has been in Georgia for more than three decades. Since 1992, the agency has channeled some $6 billion into the upper-middle-income country, the majority of which has centered on strengthening Georgia’s democratic institutions. A neighbor to Russia, the country ceded from the Soviet Union in 1991 — and ever since, it has sustained complicated relationships with both Russia and the West. That tension rose to the forefront earlier this year when Georgia began to push for a “foreign agents” law — one that would require organizations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power.” Protests broke out across the nation, and the law was blasted as a “Kremlin-style” move by the United States and Europe, one that would have a chilling effect on the country’s civil society. But in June, Georgia’s Parliament passed the law, and its relationship with both the U.S. and the European Union began to fray. “I am deeply concerned that in recent weeks the Georgian government’s choices have moved the country away from its Euro-Atlantic future, a destination desired by the overwhelming majority of Georgians,” said Robin Dunnigan, U.S. ambassador to Georgia, in an earlier statement. “Some in the ruling party have chosen to attack the greatest supporters of Georgia’s sovereignty, the United States and the European Union.” Days after the bill was passed, EU High Representative Josep Borrell said he deeply regretted the country’s decision, which would “negatively impact” Georgia’s chance to join the bloc — something the country has been pushing for since 2022. USAID Administrator Samantha Power strongly condemned the parliament’s vote, stating that it would “directly threaten the longstanding bilateral partnership” between the U.S. and Georgia. And Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced new visa restrictions on the country that would block anyone “responsible for or complicit in undermining democracy in Georgia,” along with immediate family, from obtaining a U.S. visa or traveling to the U.S. “As we review the relationship between our two countries, we will take into account Georgia’s actions in deciding our own,” Blinken warned in a press statement in late May. On Wednesday, the results of that review were made clear: Blinken announced the pause of all U.S. assistance aside from funding focused on “democracy, rule of law, independent media, and economic development.” Neither the U.S. Department of State nor USAID shared specifics of what was being cut, but last year, Georgia received $132 million in foreign assistance from the U.S. The majority of that — $82 million — came from USAID, which currently funds 35 programs in the country, according to USAID’s website and government spending data. Though most of the programs are focused on democracy, governance, and human rights, there are several centered on education, clean energy, and supporting people with disabilities, according to USAID. Money also flows to Georgia from the departments of state, labor, defense, and agriculture, among other U.S. agencies, though in much smaller numbers. “Georgia needs to understand the seriousness of the law that it passed,” said Cardin. “If they expect to integrate into Europe, if they expect to have a future with the West and NATO, they’re going in the wrong direction.”