Georgia is convulsed by political upheaval again after its pro-Moscow government, fresh off parliamentary elections denounced as rigged by its critics, decided to suspend negotiations for the small former Soviet republic to join the European Union.

The small but ancient Caucasus country, which inhabits a crossroads between Slavic, Turkish and Persian cultures, has recently found itself navigating the geopolitical standoff between Russia under strongman President Vladimir Putin and the democratic, wealthy West.