Former Georgian prosecutor general leads Russian military unit

Otar Romanov-Partskhaladze, the former prosecutor general of Georgia, has assumed command of an international military unit named ‘St George’ fighting for Russia in the war against Ukraine. The unit was reportedly formed by individuals supporting the “unification of our peoples and countries” and the defense of “traditional family values.”

Romanov-Partskhaladze, who now resides in Russia, stated that the unit’s name references the 1783 Treaty of Georgievsk. He described the mission as a fight against an “evil” that threatens both Russia and the wider world. He has previously assisted Russian forces in the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Russian regions of Kursk, Bryansk, and Belgorod.

Romanov-Partskhaladze served as Georgia’s prosecutor general in 2013 before resigning following allegations regarding a prior conviction in Germany. He has faced significant legal and political repercussions, including being stripped of his Georgian citizenship by President Salome Zurabishvili and being sanctioned by the United States in September 2023. The U.S. State Department has alleged that the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) used him to influence Georgian politics. Additionally, a Georgian court has issued an arrest warrant in absentia for him regarding allegations of organizing a murder.