The US State Department has imposed sanctions on former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, considered by many to be the most influential man in the country, Reuters and Agence France-Presse reported, citing a statement by Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, BTA reported.
Blinken accused Ivanishvili of "undermining Georgia's democratic and Euro-Atlantic future in favor of the Russian Federation".
The actions of Ivanishvili, who does not hold an official political position, as well as those of the ruling "Georgian Dream" party, of which he is the founder, "weaken democratic institutions, enable human rights violations, and alter the exercise of freedoms in Georgia", Blinken said in a statement, strongly condemning the party's "harsh crackdown" on pro-European demonstrations that have rocked the country in recent weeks.