International
The ruling party in Georgia gets an absolute majority in the elections
The ruling party Sueño Georgiano has the absolute majority in the parliamentary elections of Georgia by obtaining 54.086% of the votes with 99.6% of the ballot.
This was announced by the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) after the manual recount of the results, which then places the opposition blocs Coalition for Change, with 10.8%, and Unity -composed of the United National Movement founded by the imprisoned former Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili, and the Renaissance Strategy party-, with 10.12%.
The other two opposition blocs, Georgia Fuerte and Gajaria for Georgia, achieved 8.78% and 7.76% respectively, so that the four opposition blocs access Parliament by exceeding the 5% threshold.
Worst results in the capital
The results of Sueño Georgiano in Tbilisi, where the ballot has already ended, were worse, since it obtained 45.54% of the votes, while the opposition blocs added 45.8% of the support.
The results of the ruling party abroad were also lower, where 74.62% of the votes were scrutinized, only 17.73% of the votes, giving in to the opposition blocs Coalition for Changes (29.08%) and Unity (20.84%).
For their part, the opposition blocs Georgia Fuerte and Gajaria for Georgia obtained 14.05 and 8.45% respectively.
Almost two hours after the closing of the polling stations, the CEC gave the first ballots, according to which Sueño Georgiano obtained the majority of the votes sufficient to form a single government.
Three of the four opposition blocs – Coalition for Change, Unity and Strong Georgia – declared that they will not recognize the elections and accused Georgian Dream of having usurped power.
Georgian opposition candidates give up their seats in protest after the ruling victory
The first twenty candidates on the list of the pro-European opposition bloc Coalition for Change today resigned their mandates as deputies in protest against the results of Saturday’s parliamentary elections, in which the ruling party Sueño Georgiano won, which the opposition accuses of being related to the Kremlin.
“The elections were falsified and the results are illegitimate. We do not want to legitimize them with the votes that were stolen from the people of Georgia and we renounce the mandates,” said party list leader Nana Malashjia.
The Coalition for Changes bloc was the second most voted political force in these elections, collecting 11.3% of the votes, which gives them the right to 18 seats.
In turn, the United National Movement party, founded by imprisoned former President Mikhail Saakashvili and who is part of the opposition bloc Unidad also announced that it will boycott the Parliament led by Sueño Georgiano.
“Naturally, as we said that we do not recognize the results of the elections, this means that we do not plan to participate in (the sessions of) Parliament. I am sure that there is no doubt about it, when it comes to the Unity bloc,” said the party leader, Tinatin Bokuchava.
The situation reedits what happened in the 2020 parliamentary elections, also rejected by the opposition, which boycotted the work of Parliament and organized massive protests in front of the legislature, some of them violent.
The executive secretary of Sueño Georgiano, Mamuka Midnaradze, proposed to the entire opposition “not to join Parliament.”
“Then a good working environment will be established in Parliament, without sabotage. That they remove all their lists from the Central Electoral Commission. And we will work,” he said.
Georgia President does not recognize election results
The President of Georgia, Salomé Zurabizhvili, today refused to recognize the results of the parliamentary elections held the day before in the Caucasian nation and called on Georgians to protest this Monday in front of Parliament.
“These elections cannot be recognized, I do not recognize them. Recognizing them means recognizing that Russia has entered Georgia. The elections were Russian, they used technologies to justify the falsifications,” he said in a speech offered from the presidential palace.
International
U.S. to suspend visa processing for applicants from 75 countries
The United States announced on Wednesday that it will suspend visa processing for applicants from 75 nationalities, marking another move by President Donald Trump’s administration to curb the entry of migrants into the country.
“ The United States is freezing the processing of all visas for 75 countries, including Somalia, Russia and Iran,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X. According to Fox News, the measure will take effect on January 21 and will remain in force indefinitely.
Based on an internal State Department memorandum obtained by Fox News Digital, consular officers have been instructed to deny visa applications under existing law while the agency conducts an in-depth review of screening and vetting procedures. The stated goal is to tighten criteria to prevent the entry of foreigners who could eventually rely on public assistance.
The list of affected countries includes several nations in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as Afghanistan, Russia, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Thailand, Somalia and Yemen, among others. Fox News reported that exemptions to the suspension will be “very limited” and will only be granted once applicants pass an assessment related to the public charge requirement.
Other countries in the Americas subject to the suspension include Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
The decision is based on a strict interpretation of the so-called “public charge” clause of U.S. immigration law. A cable sent to U.S. consulates worldwide in November 2025 had already signaled the shift, instructing officials to apply tougher standards when evaluating applicants, taking into account factors such as age, health status, English proficiency, financial situation, history of public assistance, and even the potential need for long-term medical care.
International
Peruvian Court Orders Definitive Dismissal of Money Laundering Case Against Keiko Fujimori
A court of Peru’s National Superior Court of Specialized Criminal Justice ordered the definitive dismissal of the criminal proceedings for alleged money laundering and criminal organization against presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori, authorities reported on Tuesday, January 13, 2026.
The ruling was issued by the Tenth National Preparatory Investigation Court in compliance with a previous decision by the Constitutional Court (TC). The decision was confirmed by Fujimori’s attorney, Giuliana Loza, who said on social media platform X that “there was no money laundering nor criminal organization.”
According to the defense, the case was closed for lacking legal grounds and for violating due process. “The proceedings concluded because they lacked a legal basis and constituted clear prosecutorial persecution,” Loza stated.
Judge Wilson Verastegui, whose ruling was reported by local media, said the Constitutional Court determined that the facts alleged in the so-called ‘Cocktails Case’ do not constitute a criminal offense under the principle of legality. The court noted that the crime of illegal financing of political organizations was not in force at the time the alleged acts occurred.
The dismissal also applies to other leaders of the Fuerza Popular party, including Pier Figari, Ana Rosa Herz, Jaime Yoshiyama and José Chlimper, as well as the party itself.
Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori (1990–2000), had been under investigation for the alleged irregular financing of her 2011 and 2016 presidential campaigns, a case that exposed her to a possible 30-year prison sentence. However, one year ago the National Superior Court annulled the trial and returned the case to the intermediate stage.
Fujimori is currently pursuing her fourth presidential bid, ahead of Peru’s general elections scheduled for April.
International
Colombian Defense Chief Meets U.S. Officials to Advance Bilateral Narcotics Strategy
Colombia’s Minister of Defense, Pedro Sánchez Suárez, is in the United States this Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss bilateral cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking, Colombian officials said, in a visit that comes as ties between Bogotá and Washington begin to ease after a period of diplomatic tension.
The trip is seen as a prelude to a scheduled visit by Colombian President Gustavo Petro to Washington, where he is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump for the first time in early February. Sánchez will remain in Washington through Wednesday, according to Colombian government sources.
During his stay, Sánchez is slated to meet with senior U.S. officials, including representatives from the Department of Defense, members of the U.S. Senate, and White House advisors, to outline a joint strategy to “defeat drug trafficking” and expand cooperation on intelligence against transnational crime.
According to a statement from the Colombian Defense Ministry, the agenda will include strengthening collaboration on technology, intelligence sharing, and efforts to disrupt criminal networks that operate across borders. Officials said the discussions will also help set the stage for Petro’s upcoming talks with Trump.
The visit follows a period of strained U.S.–Colombia relations last year, when Washington revoked Petro’s visa and withdrew Colombia’s certification as a key partner in anti-drug efforts — moves that coincided with disagreements over counter-narcotics strategy and broader diplomatic frictions. However, a recent phone call between Petro and Trump, described as cordial by officials, helped lower tensions and reopened channels for dialogue ahead of the presidential meeting.
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