Hegemony of the European Project in Georgia: From Foreign Policy Initiative to the Logic of State Building and Development

This article examines the hegemony of the European project in Georgia established by the United National Movement government between 2004 and 2012. The puzzle is: how did President Saakashvili, in spite of continuous criticism for being less than democratic, achieve progress in taking Georgia further toward European integration? In contrast to most of the existing literature, the article claims that by foreclosing political channels for legitimate and illegitimate dissent, President Saakashvili ensured the hegemony of the European project as the sole roadmap for Georgia's national development, thus entrenching a preference for Europe in the country once and for all.