Georgia's ruling party intimidates citizens with destruction caused by Russia in Ukraine as part of its election campaign

As part of its election campaign, the ruling Georgian Dream party created banners depicting the carnage wrought by Russia in Ukraine, comparing it to a "normal life" in Georgia.

As reported by Georgia Online and SOVA, advertising banners began to be utilised on 26 September in Tbilisi and other locations. This is a series of similar posters and a video in which intact Georgian cities, fountains, and new buses are juxtaposed against videos of destruction in Ukraine.

Banner signatures call on voters to "choose peace" and "say no to war". In certain regions, a snapshot showing the destruction is complemented with figures from opposition pro-Western parties' electoral lists.

President Salome Zourabishvili was among the first to respond to the new campaign.

"I have never seen anything so shameful, so offensive to our culture, traditions, history and faith... What a vile thing it is, to hang a poster for its people, made in the ‘forges of the KGB’, without dignity and shame," Zourabishvili exclaimed.

A day earlier, a Georgian delegation to the United Nations General Assembly did not join in applauding a sizable portion of those present when US President Joe Biden talked about the importance of continuing to support Ukraine. It was also revealed that Kobakhidze's invitation to Biden's reception for foreign leaders had been cancelled.

Georgia's parliamentary elections will be held on 26 October for the first time without a majority system, increasing the opposition's chances of victory.