TBILISI, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili said Tuesday that funds channeled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and other international foundations were used to support political groups involved in attempts to destabilize the country, Imedi News reported.
Botchorishvili said that such support included what she described as financing "revolutions" and facilitating efforts to change the government through unlawful means.
"This is exactly what the Georgian government is fighting against and continues to fight. This is unacceptable for us and contradicts the development of democracy," she added.
Her remarks followed comments by Mike Benz, a former U.S. Department of State official, who on Monday referred to the mass protests in Georgia in May 2024 against the foreign influence transparency law, accusing Washington of applying double standards toward countries adopting legislation similar to the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act.
Benz indicated that individuals participating in the 2024 demonstrations had been funded under the previous U.S. administration via structures such as the USAID. ■
