Country profile · South Caucasus
Georgia
Georgia has about 3.9 million people, not counting two regions held by Russia (Geostat, 2026). The Georgian Dream party has governed since 2012, and its billionaire founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, is widely seen as the real decision-maker. Russian troops have held Abkhazia and South Ossetia, about a fifth of Georgia's land, since the 2008 war. In 2024 the government froze Georgia's bid to join the EU.
Where Georgia ranks
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All alliances →Disputed territories involving Georgia
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Who runs Georgia?
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze was born on September 25, 1978, in Tbilisi. He earned a law doctorate in Düsseldorf, Germany, and became prime minister in February 2024. Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of Georgian Dream, is widely seen as the real decision-maker. He was born in 1956 in a village in western Georgia and made his fortune in Russia in the 1990s, in banking and metals. Forbes puts his wealth at $2.7 billion, about 7% of Georgia's economy. He was prime minister in 2012 and 2013 and is now the party's honorary chairman. The United States sanctioned him in December 2024. In the election of October 26, 2024, Georgian Dream won 89 of 150 seats. OSCE observers found pressure on voters, and the opposition rejected the result. In February 2025, 49 opposition members gave up their seats (chart). Former President Mikheil Saakashvili and several opposition leaders are in prison. Georgian Dream has asked the Constitutional Court to ban five opposition parties, and hearings start on October 21, 2026.
- Elected for Georgian Dream 89
- For Georgia (Giorgi Gakharia's party) 12
- Empty: opposition members gave up their seats 49
Photo (October 2025): Administration of the President of Georgia, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
Who are Georgia's allies and rivals?
Georgia has no treaty allies. Turkey is its biggest trading partner, and since 2017 a railway has linked Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. Azerbaijan supplies most of Georgia's natural gas, and ethnic Azerbaijanis are 6.8% of Georgia's population. China became a strategic partner in 2023, and a free trade agreement between the two has been in force since 2018. Georgia sent more troops per person to the NATO mission in Afghanistan than any other country, and 32 Georgian soldiers died there. NATO promised in 2008 that Georgia would join one day. Relations with the West have soured since 2024. The United States suspended its strategic partnership with Georgia on November 30, 2024, and has no ambassador in Tbilisi. Russia is Georgia's rival. Georgia cut diplomatic ties after the 2008 war, and Russian troops hold Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Even so, direct flights resumed in May 2023, Russians can stay a year without a visa, and Georgia has not joined Western sanctions on Russia. Russia is Georgia's third-largest trading partner.
- Sukhumi Main town of Abkhazia, held by separatists since 1993. Russia has a military base at nearby Gudauta.
- Tskhinvali Main town of South Ossetia, where the 2008 war began. Russia has a military base here.
- Anaklia Planned deep-sea port on the Black Sea. The first stage is due in 2029.
- Tbilisi The capital. Protesters have rallied outside parliament every day since November 2024.
- Georgia
- Partner
- Rival
Who does Georgia trade with?
Georgia exported $7.3 billion of goods in 2025 and imported $18.5 billion (Geostat). Cars were 38.6% of exports, and most were not made in Georgia. In 2025 Georgia imported 184,427 cars from the United States, mostly used, and sold many of them on to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, its two biggest export markets (chart). Georgia has banned the resale of EU and US cars to Russia since 2023. Russia buys about 64% of Georgian wine. Georgians abroad sent home $3.6 billion in 2025, most of it from the United States and Italy (National Bank of Georgia). Money sent from Russia fell from over $2 billion in 2022 to $468 million in 2025. It almost stopped after July 2026, when a Russian transfer service stopped sending money to Georgia because of EU sanctions. That month the EU also sanctioned Georgia's only oil refinery, at Kulevi, for using Russian crude oil. Tourism earned a record $4.7 billion in 2025. The economy grew 7.5% in 2025, and the IMF expects 7.2% in 2026.
Sells to
Share of Georgia's exports
Kyrgyzstan20.6%
Kazakhstan12.5%
Russia10.3%
Azerbaijan9.6%
Armenia7.6%
Buys from
Share of Georgia's imports
Turkey15.0%
United States14.7%
China10.7%- Russia10.5%
Germany6.9%
Goods, 2025. National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat).
Why did Georgia's bid to join the EU stall?
The EU made Georgia a candidate for membership in December 2023. In May 2024 parliament passed a law that makes groups and media with more than 20% foreign funding register as serving a foreign power. Parliament overrode a veto by President Salome Zourabichvili. In June 2024 EU leaders said Georgia's path to membership was in effect halted, and the EU suspended more than 120 million euros of aid to the government. On November 28, 2024, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said Georgia would not seek to open membership talks until the end of 2028. Daily protests began that evening. New laws in 2025 made foreign agents register and required government approval for foreign grants. Since March 6, 2026, holders of Georgian diplomatic and official passports need visas for the EU. Ordinary Georgians can still travel without one. The European Commission calls Georgia a candidate "on paper only". Georgia's constitution still commits the state to join the EU and NATO, and in early 2026, 71% of Georgians supported joining the EU (EU Neighbours East survey).
Who controls Abkhazia and South Ossetia?
Separatists backed by Russia control both regions, and Russian troops are based there. Georgia lost control of them in wars in the early 1990s. About 300,000 people are still registered as displaced inside Georgia. On the night of August 7 to 8, 2008, Georgia shelled Tskhinvali, the main town of South Ossetia, and Russia invaded. A ceasefire was agreed on August 12. About 850 people were killed. An EU report found in 2009 that Georgia started the war but that Russia's response went beyond reasonable self-defense. On August 26, 2008, Russia recognized both regions as independent. Only Syria, Venezuela and Nicaragua have followed. Together the regions cover about 18% of Georgia's land. Russian border guards have moved fences deeper into Georgian-held land, and 74 Georgians were detained near the lines in 2025. A treaty in force since May 26, 2026 lets Russians hold government posts in South Ossetia. In September 2026 Marat Kambolov, a Russian official, won South Ossetia's leadership vote with about 85%. The EU called it a step toward annexation.