The Vice Prime Minister of Georgia announced his departure from politics amid new accusations against Garibashvili.

Influential leader of the ruling party "Georgian Dream", Vice Prime Minister Mamuka Mdinaradze announced his departure from politics. The statement came three days after new corruption charges were brought against former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia has charged former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili with receiving a bribe on a large scale. According to the supervisory authority, this concerns a bribe he received in connection with secret state procurements of the Ministry of Defense.

According to the 48-year-old politician, the decision was his personal initiative, which matured in recent weeks. At the same time, Mdinaradze acknowledged that the day before the public announcement of his departure, he had a "long conversation" with Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, and on the morning of August 27 - with the founder of "Georgian Dream" Bidzina Ivanishvili, Newsgeorgia reports.

"Mr. Irakli and Mr. Bidzina initially did not want to agree with me, but I convinced them that it would be better for me this way. It may sound incredible to some, but this is my sincere desire. Ten years of complete immersion in politics, where the level of responsibility and intensity is at its peak - this is very difficult. I think I deserve a little rest," Mdinaradze stated at a briefing in the government administration.

He thanked the ruling party team and added that he is ready to resume his political career "only in the most extreme case - if the team urgently needs him and there is no other way out." Regarding his future, the former minister noted that he might try his hand in business.

The opposition predicted Mdinaradze's fate like Garibashvili's

One of the leaders of the party "Lelo - Strong Georgia" Grigol Gegelia stated that "in the race of devouring each other" the next will be Irakli Kobakhidze, reports the Pirveli TV channel.

"We are all now witnessing how Ivanishvili's rats devour each other, different factions, different clans, and this is precisely Ivanishvili's handwriting; he will make different rats devour each other until he either drains them all together or replaces them," said Grigol Gegelia.

Mdinaradze will also meet the fate of former high-ranking officials Grigol Liluashvili and Irakli Garibashvili, believes former president of the National Bank of Georgia, opposition member Roman Gotsiridze.

"Soon it will be Mdinaradze's turn - someone from Ivanishvili's circle will be the first to throw a stone at him if they receive a signal from him," Gotsiridze wrote on his Facebook page.

Former member of the "Georgian Dream" party Gedevani Popkhadze claims that Mamuka Mdinaradze's departure from politics is related to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. According to Popkhadze, today the Prime Minister represents nothing, and Bidzina Ivanishvili will replace him whenever he wants.

"Bidzina Ivanishvili created a system in which he has only pawns; he can sacrifice any pawn or turn it into another piece," Popkhadze stated.

Political expert Gia Khukhashvili reacted to Mamuka Mdinaradze's departure from politics on social media, ironically stating that a cabinet of ministers can be formed even in prison.

"In principle, a cabinet of ministers can be formed in prison. What difference does it make in which building the prisoners are held..." Khukhashvili wrote.

Mamuka Mdinaradze is one of the key figures in Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's government. Before moving to the executive branch, he led the parliamentary majority for a long time. From September 2025, he headed the State Security Service, and from April 2026, he held the positions of Vice Prime Minister and State Minister for Coordination of Law Enforcement Agencies.

On July 29, Kobakhidze announced a large-scale restructuring of the government. The position of State Minister for Coordination of Law Enforcement Agencies, created specifically for Mdinaradze, was abolished. The Prime Minister promised to appoint him as State Minister for Regional Policy - this apparatus was supposed to be created after the liquidation of the Ministry of Regional Development.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that in April 2026, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced former Minister of Defense of Georgia Dzhua Sher Burchuladze to 10 years in prison in a corruption and money laundering case.