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The nation's prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, has unveiled a comprehensive suppression on dissent, alleging protesters who attempted to storm the presidential palace of seeking to topple his administration and pointing the finger at the EU for meddling in the country's affairs.

The prime minister made these allegations just a day after protesters attempted to breach the presidential palace during municipal polls. Security forces stopped them by employing irritant spray and water cannon.

"No one will avoid accountability. This includes political responsibility," Kobakhidze was quoted as saying.

Law enforcement detained at least several protesters, including representatives of the largest opposition party and the opera singer turned campaigner Paata Burchuladze.

Domestic news outlets reported the health ministry as saying that 21 police officers and 6 demonstrators had been injured in confrontations in central Tbilisi.

Context of the Political Crisis

The South Caucasus country has been in upheaval since the prime minister's governing GD party declared win in last year's parliamentary election, which the European-leaning opposition asserts was rigged. Since then, Tbilisi's talks on entering the bloc have been frozen.

The premier said that up to seven thousand people participated in the weekend's opposition rally but their "attempt to overthrow the constitutional order" had been prevented despite what he described as support from the European Union.

"A number of people have been detained – primarily the organisers of the attempted coup," he told the press, adding that the primary opposition group "will no longer be allowed from being active in Georgian politics."

Protest Movement Calls and Government Response

Opposition figures had urged a "peaceful revolution" against Georgian Dream, which they allege of being pro-Russian and dictatorial. The political group has been in control since 2012.

A large crowd of demonstrators assembled in the center of the city, waving national and European flags, after months of targeted operations on free press, restrictions on civil society and the detention of dozens of critics and activists.

Kobakhidze accused the EU's ambassador to Georgia, Paweł Herczyński, of interference. "You know that certain individuals from abroad have even expressed explicit backing for these actions, for the announced attempt to disrupt the constitutional order," he said, noting that Herczyński "holds particular accountability in this situation."

"The ambassador should speak out, distance himself and strongly denounce everything that is occurring on the streets of Tbilisi," said the prime minister.

EU Response and Ongoing Geopolitical Tensions

In the summer, the EU's diplomatic service rejected what it called "false information and unfounded claims" about the Union's supposed involvement in the nation.

The pro-western opposition have been organizing demonstrations since the previous autumn, when Georgian Dream won a national vote that its critics say was marred by fraud. The party has rejected accusations of vote-rigging.

The country has the objective of joining the European Union written into its constitution and has long been among the most Europe-oriented of the Soviet Union's successor states. Its relations with the west have been under pressure since Moscow's military offensive of Ukraine in 2022.

Georgian Dream is directed by its founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, the wealthiest individual and a former prime minister, and denies it is aligned with Russia. It says it wants to enter the European Union while preserving peace with Moscow.