A tide of public dissent is rising in the heart of Tbilisi and across several Georgian cities. Thousands of citizens, driven by concerns over a proposed 'foreign agents' bill, have taken to the streets in protests that have caught international attention.

According to BBC and Reuters, protesters reject the bill, saying it is inspired by authoritarian legislation that neighboring Russia uses to crush dissent. Russia uses its 2012 law to marginalize voices challenging the Kremlin - including prominent cultural figures, media organizations, and civil society groups.

On Thursday, the US said the bill threatened free speech, while the EU warned that repression of the protest could harm Tbilisi's ambitions of joining the bloc.

"The Georgian people want a European future for their country," EU's Ursula von der Leyen posted on X. "Georgia is at a crossroads. It should stay the course on the road to Europe."

Billionaire founder of Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili, claimed this week that a Western "global war" party was using the country as part of its confrontation with Russia and funding it with cryptocurrency to avoid being exposed.

The State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG) doubled down on Ivanishvili's accusations, claiming these protests are not just local grievances coming to a boil but are fueled by external forces leveraging the anonymity of cryptocurrency to orchestrate unrest from afar.

Foreign Funding and Crypto Anonymity

The SSSG has made bold claims stating that the protests, marked by their intensity and spread, are being orchestrated by individuals outside of Georgia. According to the agency, these masterminds are utilizing cryptocurrency transactions to obscure the source of their funding, ensuring their operations remain in mystery.

This move to digital currency is seen as an attempt to evade tracking and accountability, raising alarms over the potential for foreign interference in Georgia's domestic affairs.

Training for Turmoil

Further allegations from the SSSG suggest that these external actors went as far as arranging visits to Georgia to conduct cryptocurrency transaction-related training sessions.

This initiative was purportedly aimed at equipping protest organizers with the know-how to secretly receive and manage funds for their activities, hinting at a well-organized effort to destabilize the nation.

Legislative Lightning Rod

The proposed 'foreign agents' bill is at the heart of the unrest, which has sparked widespread concern among Georgians and the international community.

Critics argue that the bill, mirroring similar legislation in Russia, could severely hamper the operations of political and civil society NGOs, potentially derailing Georgia's European Union membership bid.

The controversy has escalated to the point where more than 30 members of the European Parliament have urged the withdrawal of Georgia's EU candidate status, signaling the international ramifications of the bill.

"Such a law would dash any hope of Georgia joining the EU."

A Nation at a Crossroads

News reports said the months-old protests will likely continue while the parliament gears up for a decisive vote on the bill and how to respond to the public outcry.