A day before the visit of Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, US Department of State James O’Brien to Georgia began, pro-government Imedi TV said that "Mr. O’Brien is bringing a specific package for sanctioning Bidzina Ivanishvili to Georgia."

"Mr. O’Brien is bringing a specific package for sanctioning Bidzina Ivanishvili to Georgia. The meeting will be held between Ivanishvili and O'Brien and the discussion at this meeting will also be about Ivanishvili's sanctions. According to reports, after this meeting, honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream will appeal to the members of his team to take into account his request and soften the positions regarding the "bill on transparency of foreign influence", pro-government Imedi TV said on May 13.

After this media report Accent asked US Department of State for a comment.

• "As a standard, we do not preview sanctions nor do we rule sanctions out," a spokesperson for the United States Department of State told the Accent.

As for the main purpose of O’Brien's visit, the State Department pointed to the travel announcement that was released last week:

• "Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs James C. O’Brien will travel to Tbilisi, Georgia, and Podgorica and Kotor, Montenegro, May 14-17. In Georgia, he will meet with representatives from government, civil society, and the private sector to express the United States’ enduring commitment to the Georgian people and to Georgia’s desire for a peaceful, prosperous, and secure Euro-Atlantic future."

More context: On May 13 Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jim O’Brien requested a meeting with the honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream party Bidzina Ivanishvili, but that request was rejected by Ivanishvili. He named the "de facto sanctioning of Ivanishvili" as the reason for the decision:

“The reason for the refusal was the same in all cases. Bidzina Ivanishvili said that he was already under de facto sanctions because he had frozen 2 billion [U.S.] dollars that he had entrusted to the West, but which turned up in the hands of the Global War Party. As soon as this blackmail and de facto sanctions end, any meeting can be held right away, but today, this is Bidzina Ivanishvili’s position on this topic. Therefore, just as such blackmail and threats did not fly since March 2022, when his funds were frozen after the war in Ukraine, neither will such blackmail and threats fly now. That is, no one can make Bidzina Ivanishvili take steps against the state by blackmail and threats. The sanctions in itself mean blackmail, the sanctions in themselves contain blackmail and threats, so it is not a serious topic considering all these circumstances.”

During his press conference, Prime Minister Kobakhidze repeated his claim that more than 60% of the population support the law on foreign agents. Therefore, he said the Parliament would pass the law in the third and final reading at the plenary session of the Parliament.