Georgia is engulfed in a wave of protests due to the authorities' refusal to integrate into Europe: the US has excluded the country from the list of strategic partners

Hundreds of people gathered in other places in central Tbilisi as well. They eventually gathered on Shota Rustaveli Avenue and another main street, Merab Kostava, where the main national broadcaster, OVG, is located nearby. The opposition is demanding that it be allowed on the air.

The standoff between police and protesters outside the Georgian parliament has been marked by the frequent use of water cannons and, judging by the video, tear gas. The police are trying to drive protesters away from the steel gates of the parliament and create a buffer between the riot police and the people on the side streets near the parliament.

Near the parliament building, where protesters are being driven away from the entrance with fire hoses and from two side streets with water cannons, everything is wet.

Several thousand people also took to the streets in Batumi, where the opposition held a protest the day before. Many of its participants were detained, so people marched to the city court building to protest the arrests.

Opposition rallies are also taking place in Poti, Rustavi, Telavi, Kutaisi – that is, in all the main cities of the country.

NewsGeorgia reported that opposition representatives are holding consultations at the presidential residence, with Salome Zurabishvili on the side of the protesters, to coordinate further actions.

Let us recall that the protests were caused by the Prime Minister and member of the country's ruling party "Georgian Dream" (it advocates close cooperation with Russia) Irakli Kobakhidze declaring that Georgia would refuse to negotiate accession to the European Union until 2028 and freeze all joint programs with the EU. This immediately caused protests, since, according to various polls, 70-80% of the country's residents want it to join the EU.

On the subject: Russia cancels the visa regime with Georgia and lifts the ban on direct flights

Protests are continuing for the fifth day in a row - the largest, with tens of thousands of people taking part, took place on November 30. It lasted until late into the night - protesters set off fireworks, and police responded with batons and water cannons.

This action has also had its first significant political consequences. President Salome Zurabishvili, who is ending her term in December, said on November 30 that she does not consider the parliament legitimate (it is supposed to elect the next president in December), and therefore will continue to work in her post. The Georgian Dream claims that new elections will be held on time.

On the evening of December 1, Salome Zurabishvili made a televised address in which she stated that the protests not only comply with the country's Constitution, but also protect it.