"Bidzina Ivanishvili has ties to the Russian oligarchy... The Georgian government supported Putin's regime" | Navalny team member Vladimir Milov

"Bidzina Ivanishvili has ties with the Russian oligarchy... The Georgian government supported Putin's regime," Vladimir Milov, a member of Alexei Navalny's team, said on the air of the Mtavari Channel. As noted that he first heard about Ivanishvili in Russia in the 90s, when he was still working in the government of the country, though "not Bidzina, but Boris Ivanishvili."

"His company was facing default and financial problems, and he was asking for help. At the end of the 90s, when I heard that he had returned to Georgian politics, I had the impression that he had some connections. Evtushenkov. He had some historical connections with Russia. Of course, Bidzina Ivanishvili has ties with Russian oligarchy and we have to look for basis that connects him and Russian oligarchy," says Milov.

He suggested that the Kremlin is now threatening and intimidating the Georgian government.

"I think the Kremlin is now trying very hard to threaten and intimidate the Georgian government because Georgia is very important to it because it is a neighboring country. On the other hand we know that for the last 20 years Georgia has had a very clear-cut course in terms of supporting Europe and Ukraine. And formally Georgia has never rejected NATO and the European Union, that's why the position of the Georgian government is important, he said.

According to him, no one in the West doubts that the goal of the Georgian nation is the European integration - "but the Georgian government and authorities leave certain question marks for the Western partners.

Vladimir Milov also says that he was recently in the U.S. and spoke with American and European politicians in Washington about the actions of the Georgian government.

"...I just returned from Washington, D.C., where I talked a lot with American and European politicians about Georgia and the position of the Georgian government. The Georgian government was expected to support Ukraine and its sovereignty against the background of Putin's aggression, but we see that the Georgian government did not even join the sanctions and supported Putin's regime...Georgia should have taken a different position on this war," Milov said.

He also talked about Georgia's third president. He said that while he does not support Mikheil Saakashvili, his imprisonment is unacceptable - "he has not committed any crimes for which he should be imprisoned. Of course, I admit that this is persecution of political opponents.