The Georgians call it the Russian Law. It was passed recently by the Parliament in the Republic of Georgia, purportedly to improve transparency by having civil society and media groups that get some of their funds from abroad register as groups carrying the interests of a foreign power.
The law has drawn stiff rebukes from the United States and Europe. The State Department has announced visa restrictions on officials behind the foreign-agent law and Congress has threatened further sanctions.
European Union officials have warned that it could block Georgia's bid for membership only six months after the country was granted candidate status. This is a serious threat for a country where polls show about 80 percent of the population supporting a Western political orientation.
The clash over the foreign-agent law in a small country nestled in the Caucasus Mountains has been largely overshadowed by Russia's war on Ukraine. Yet it is also at its core an East-West struggle over Georgia's political path, a contest with cardinal implications for the region's future.
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