Georgian Election Ads Spark Outrage Over Use of Ukraine War Imagery

Georgia's ruling party has unveiled controversial advertisements using images of Ukraine's wartime devastation to promote their platform of maintaining peace with Russia. The ads have sparked backlash from President Salome Zourabichvili, opposition leaders, and Ukraine's Foreign Ministry. The Georgian Dream party is trying to hold on to power in the upcoming October 26 election.

Georgia's president and opposition leaders are expressing heated outrage over a series of controversial advertisements released by the ruling Georgian Dream party ahead of the October 26 election.

The advertisements, depicting pictures of war-torn Ukrainian cities contrasted against peaceful Georgian ones, suggest that only Georgian Dream can maintain peace with Russia. They have been displayed on billboards and aired on television, sparking widespread condemnation.

President Salome Zourabichvili, a vocal critic of the ruling party, called the ads "shameful," while former prime minister Giorgi Gakharia denounced them as "disgusting." The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry also labeled the advertisements as "unacceptable."

(With inputs from agencies.)