Protests Erupt in Georgia as It Pulls Back From Pro-Western Path

Thousands of people demonstrated in front of the Parliament building in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, for a second day on Friday after the government announced that the country had suspended its bid to join the European Union for four years.

The announcement has further deepened the conflict between the country’s opposition, which wants closer ties with the West, and the governing Georgian Dream party, which has been pivoting Georgia away from Europe toward Russia and China.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Thursday said that the country was putting the process of accession into the European Union on hold until 2028. Mr. Kobakhidze also said that Georgia would decline all grants from the European Union, which has allocated more than $500 million to the country since 2019.

Thousands of protesters poured onto the streets outside the Parliament building on Thursday night but were dispersed by riot police using water cannons and tear gas. On Friday night, protesters returned, blocking a long stretch of Tbilisi’s main Rustaveli Avenue and the surrounding streets. Some protesters threw stones at police officers and tried to blind them with green laser pointers. The police responded with stun grenades and water cannons.

“We are against Russian politics, which we feel every day we wake up in the morning,” said David Kiknavelidze, 26, a musician. “We want to be free of it.”

Mr. Kiknavelidze said the problem the protesters had was that Georgia’s pro-Western opposition had been splintered and could not come up with a cohesive agenda.