At the June 6 press briefing, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller announced that the U.S. has sanctioned "dozens" of Georgian individuals as part of its first tranche of sanctions.

In his statement, Miller expressed that the U.S. remains deeply troubled by the anti-democratic actions of the Georgian Dream Party and its recent statements and rhetoric. He warned that these actions threaten to derail Georgia's European future and run counter to both the Georgian Constitution and the wishes of the Georgian people.

Referring to the comprehensive review of U.S.-Georgia relations initiated by Secretary Blinken, Miller explained that the State Department has implemented a new visa restriction policy under Section 211 A 3C of the Immigration and Nationality Act. "Under this policy, we are imposing visa restrictions today on dozens of Georgian individuals," he said. These include those responsible for or complicit in undermining democracy in Georgia, such as those who undermine freedom of peaceful assembly and association, violently attack peaceful demonstrators, intimidate civil society representatives, and deliberately spread disinformation at the behest of the Georgian government.

The first tranche of visa restrictions targets members of the Georgian Dream party, members of parliament, law enforcement officials, and private citizens. Miller emphasized that the goal is for Georgia's leaders to reconsider their actions and take steps to advance their nation's long-stated democratic and Euro-Atlantic aspirations. "But if they do not, the United States is prepared to take further action," he warned.

In response to questions, Miller clarified that the number of sanctioned individuals is between two and three dozen. He confirmed that those with U.S. visas will receive notifications, while in other cases "we don't typically notify people, but they find out if they try to come to the U.S.".

When asked about the number of expected tranches, Miller said he could not specify, adding, "We are prepared to impose additional sanctions and will take all necessary steps as appropriate."

As to the message the U.S. intends to send with these incremental sanctions, Miller said, "There is still time for the Georgian government to reverse its current course. He emphasized that this applies not only to the recently passed "law on foreign agents", but also to the broader crackdown on dissent and statements by Georgian leaders that reject the country's longstanding path. "Our policy depends on the policy that Georgia undertakes," Miller concluded.

Reaction of the Georgian Dream

Tea Tsulukiani, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Sports, reacted: "This is fresh news and it could be boldly said that this is yet another mistake that the US is making, unfortunately for them and for us, in the relationship with its strategic partner... We can assume that after this new mistake, other mistakes will be made; we hope not, but the dynamics make me think so... This will probably prolong the time in our bilateral relations when the day will come when we will turn the page and reset the relations. So that is the mistake. Of course, first of all, the US very much needs to reset this relationship, we will wait for that day, we have been and are committed to our strategic partnership. We have never rejected the US and our friendship with them... This government is a problem for some, and this government, of which I have been a member for 12 consecutive years, has never taken a step against this strategic partnership. We will wait patiently for the day when our friend decides to talk to us in a friendly way again and refuses to finance the revolution.

Kakha Kaladze, General Secretary of Georgian Dream and Mayor of Tbilisi, said, "This does not change our attitude towards the Motherland. It does not change our decision when it comes to the interests of the country and the future of this country. It's not serious, everything that's happening... Nobody is afraid of these sanctions. We've said it before... Accordingly, we have declared our policy that we will protect the interests of the country. It's not a problem for someone to go somewhere or not to go somewhere, for me it's not of essential importance when we're talking about the country and the homeland".