By suspending talks with the E.U., the party was decisively pivoting to Russia and away from its European aspirations — one of the few goals most Georgians agree on.

All the while neighbouring Russia trains a close eye, comparing events to Ukraine’s “Maidan”, when its unpopular president was ousted by pro-EU protesters in February 2014 and Russian troops and their proxies moved in to seize parts of the country.

Police clashed with protesters in the Georgian capital Tbilisi early on Friday, after the country’s ruling party said the government would suspend talks on European Union accession and refuse budgetary grants until 2028.

Thousands protested outside of the Georgian parliament in Tbilisi for a fifth straight night after the government suspended plans to join the European Union.

If brutish local police were Georgia’s only threat, pro-European protesters might be on solid ground. Speaking to your columnist from Tbilisi, demonstrators described a city in a febrile, daring mood since the ruling Georgian Dream party,

The protests come amid a greater, global power struggle over the country’s place in the world order. The protesters — as well as the European Union and the United States — are pushing for a more democratic society that’s aligned with the West.