Every year, eight million visitors come to discover the breathtaking wilderness of Georgia, visit its charming seaside resorts and casinos. But the pearl of the Caucasus is also an explosive powder keg. In this former Soviet satellite, the Cold War never ended.
Even if the majority of Georgians dream of Europe, part of the population still supports Russia. And some far-right militants, close to Putin, are increasing their hate speech against the West. In the north of the country, pro-Russians have even seceded. Two regions, South Ossetia and Abkhazia, have declared their autonomy.
Georgian president, Salomé Zourabichvili, a committed Westerner, has to perform a perilous balancing act. On the one hand, she wants to join the European Union. On the other, she has to deal with a government close to the Kremlin, long headed by Bidzina Ivanishvili, an oligarch who made his fortune in Russia.
The President also has to contend with profound social inequalities. Outside Tbilisi, the capital, a large part of the population survives on just a few euros a day. Most of them are small farmers or miners living in remote provinces or high mountain villages.