One of the most high-profile trials in recent years has begun in Georgia — the case of the so-called “state sabotage,” in which eight well-known opposition politicians have been charged with serious crimes against the state: cooperation with foreign governments to the detriment of national interests, assistance in imposing sanctions against Georgian citizens, and attempts to destabilize the situation after the 2024 parliamentary elections.
The opposition denounced the case as politically motivated and says it is an attempt to suppress dissent. The trial is taking place against the backdrop of a prolonged political crisis in Georgia, disputes over the election results, and an intensifying conflict between the government and opposition forces.
“The Sabotage Case”
The investigation of the so-called “sabotage case” was launched by the Prosecutor General’s Office of Georgia in the autumn of 2025.
On November 6, the prosecutor’s office officially announced the investigation of a criminal case involving crimes against the state. According to the investigation, opposition leaders participated in activities directed against the state interests of Georgia. The charges include cooperation with foreign governments, transferring information to them that could harm the country’s security, as well as participation in actions that led to the introduction of sanctions against Georgian citizens.
The prosecutor’s office claims that the defendants “provided foreign states with information about the country’s security, the import of petroleum products, and other issues to the detriment of Georgia’s state interests.”
According to investigators, it was precisely as a result of these actions that a number of foreign countries imposed personal sanctions against approximately 300 citizens of Georgia — among them political figures, public officials, and business figures.
In addition, the prosecutor’s office links the actions of the defendants to political events following the 2024 parliamentary elections.
The investigation claims that opposition leaders, “with the aim of radicalizing the process,” expressed distrust in the official voting results, organized street protests, and made calls against the government.
Eight well-known representatives of the Georgian opposition became defendants in the case.
Among them:
• the third President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili
• the leader of the party “Strategy Aghmashenebeli,” Giorgi Vashadze
• the leaders of the “Coalition for Change” — Nika Gvaramia, Nika Melia, Zurab Japaridze, and Elene Khoshtaria
• the leaders of the coalition “Lelo — Strong Georgia,” Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze
All of them represent different political forces, however in recent years they have often voiced coordinated criticism of the ruling party “Georgian Dream.”
Some of the accused have been assigned preventive measures in the form of bail. Thus, Zurab Japaridze was assigned bail in the amount of 30,000 lari (about 11,000 dollars). The politician stated that he intends to pay it. The same amount was assigned by the Tbilisi City Court to the leader of the party “Strategy Aghmashenebeli,” Giorgi Vashadze.
One of the leaders of the opposition coalition “For Change,” Nika Gvaramia, was also assigned bail in the amount of 30,000 lari. It is noteworthy that Gvaramia was released from prison only two weeks earlier — on February 12 — after serving a sentence in another case related to his failure to appear at a meeting of a commission headed by former Justice Minister Tea Tsulukiani.
Charges that could bring sentences of up to 15 years in jail
The charges against the defendants in the case are based on several articles of the Criminal Code of Georgia.
Mikheil Saakashvili has been charged with calls for the violent change of the constitutional order or the overthrow of state power (Article 317 of the Criminal Code). Under this article he faces up to three years of imprisonment.
More serious charges have been brought against the other defendants. Zurab Japaridze and Giorgi Vashadze are accused of sabotage and assisting a foreign state in hostile activities (Part 1 of Article 318 and Article 319 of the Criminal Code). Under these articles each of them could face from seven to fifteen years of imprisonment.
Elene Khoshtaria faces the same charges, as well as an additional charge of providing material means for committing a crime (Part 1 of Article 321 of the Criminal Code). The maximum punishment under the combined articles is up to fifteen years of imprisonment.
Nika Gvaramia, Nika Melia, Mamuka Khazaradze, and Badri Japaridze are accused under the article on sabotage (Part 1 of Article 318 of the Criminal Code).
The first preliminary hearing in the case took place on February 10 at the Tbilisi City Court.
Mikheil Saakashvili, Nika Gvaramia, Giorgi Vashadze, Zurab Japaridze, and Badri Japaridze were present at the hearing. Mamuka Khazaradze was absent, as he is currently abroad. Nika Melia and Elene Khoshtaria also did not appear in court. Their lawyers reported that the politicians consider the process a “political farce” and refused to participate in the hearing.
After the pretrial hearing, the judge recognized all evidence presented by the prosecutor’s office as admissible and transferred the case for consideration on the merits.
According to representatives of the prosecutor’s office, the case contains more than forty volumes of materials and includes the testimony of hundreds of witnesses. The investigation claims that during the court hearings each piece of evidence will be linked to specific defendants.
On February 23, the Tbilisi City Court began consideration of the case on the merits.
The opposition is crying foul
The defense of the accused calls the case politically motivated and claims that the prosecutor’s evidentiary base is extremely weak.
According to lawyers and the defendants themselves, the multi-volume case materials contain no direct evidence that opposition politicians called for violence or attempted to organize a coup. During the court hearing the defendants refused to plead guilty.
One of the opposition leaders, Nika Gvaramia, stated that the charges in fact do not contain a description of specific criminal actions.
“All leading political leaders are in the dock, and no one knows what we are accused of; we only know the article, we do not know what actions it refers to — we will again file a motion to open the hearing.”
According to him, it is practically impossible to defend oneself because the charges lack specificity. Gvaramia also stated that the actions of the opposition could not have led to sanctions against the country.
“No Georgian politician worked on the introduction of sanctions against Georgia. If the imposition of sanctions against Ivanishvili is equivalent to imposing sanctions against Georgia, then whoever says this acknowledges that Ivanishvili runs this country, which is unconstitutional.”
Other defendants in the case also reject the accusations. The leader of the party “Strategy Aghmashenebeli,” Giorgi Vashadze, stated that the case is connected with the political crisis of recent years and the question of the country’s European integration.
“The prosecutor’s office accuses us of non-existent crimes because of cooperation with foreign countries. In these materials the prosecutor’s office falsely presents the circumstances of what happened. Where did the political crisis begin? We asked the government to submit an application for membership in the European Union… Membership in the European Union is written into the Constitution of Georgia; this is directly stated in Article 78. I was obliged to do everything so that Georgia could become a member of the European Union.”
Former President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili also called the process absurd. He also called on the opposition to unite.
“We must realize what kind of absurdity we are living in. Therefore, the main thing now is the country. Any party, personal ambitions, old grievances, and new quarrels — all this is smaller than the challenges facing Georgia.”
According to Saakashvili, in the event of a guilty verdict, his total prison term could reach sixteen years.
“More than for pedophiles and serial killers.”
The trial may finally help the pro-European opposition come together
Against the backdrop of court proceedings and the political crisis, opposition forces announced the creation of a new political alliance.
After several months of difficult negotiations, nine opposition parties on March 2 announced the formation of an alliance which they call a “democratic alternative” to the ruling party. The initiators of the alliance said that this marks the beginning of a new stage of the struggle.
They named the main goal of the alliance as changing the government and returning the country to the path of Euro-Atlantic integration. The strategic task is the mobilization of the majority of citizens for peaceful protests and subsequent political changes.
The alliance is built on three main principles:
• “Unity without uniformity” — the parties retain their ideological identity but coordinate protest actions
• “Democratic alternative” — decisions are made on the basis of equality among participants
• “Political and public consensus” — the formation of a democratic coalition government
The statement also says that the struggle will continue until political prisoners are released and free elections are held.
The opposition believes that the sabotage case is an attempt by the authorities to suppress political opponents and limit political competition. The authorities, on the contrary, claim that it concerns the investigation of serious crimes against the state.
How this process will develop remains an open question. The court hearings have only just begun, and ahead lies the examination of dozens of volumes of materials and the testimony of hundreds of witnesses. However, it is already clear that the case of “state sabotage” has become one of the key episodes of the ongoing political crisis in Georgia and may seriously affect the future of the country’s political system.
