The fourth president of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, may replace Nika Melia as chairman of the largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), Rustavi-2 TV channel reports.

According to the channel, Margvelashvili received an offer personally from his predecessor, the third president of Georgia and the founder of the UNM, Mikheil Saakashvili. It is also claimed that the UNM has already made a decision on this issue. The TV company tried to clarify the information from Margvelashvili himself, but he refused a telephone interview.

Giorgi Margvelashvili entered active politics after October 2021, when Georgian Dream replaced the United National Movement party. From October 2012 to October 2013, he served as the country's Minister of Education in the government of Bidzina Ivanishvili. In 2013, thanks to the support of the Georgian Dream political party, he was elected president of the country and worked in this post until 2018. Then he spoiled relations with the leadership of the ruling party and the government, openly supporting the opposition.

Since October 2021, when Saakashvili returned to his homeland and was taken into custody, Giorgi Margvelashvili visited him several times in prison. And on April 15, 2022, Margvelashvili visited Ukraine along with the leaders of the UNM. According to him, he made the decision to go to Kyiv after a conversation with Saakashvili.

The prospect of Margvelashvili's transition to the UNM was commented on by one of the “Georgian Dream” leaders and Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Gia Volsky. According to the politician, he has not yet decided how to call this event "clownery or a far-sighted decision."

"Very strange. Perhaps they are not satisfied with the leadership of Nakopia (Koba Nakopia is one of the leaders and sponsors of the UNM) or they want to push Melia aside, I can’t tell you yet. If this information is correct, I think I would call it clowning or some far-sighted decision, which of these two should I choose?” Volsky rhetorically asked.