The billionaire 'Bond villain' dubbed Boa Constrictor who is suffocating democracy in Georgia and orchestrating one of Putin's biggest victories... from his hilltop lair with a tank full of sharks

The publication could beryllium lifted consecutive from a James Bond film. A billionaire oligarch with the nickname 'Boa Constrictor' softly suffocates a federation state. 

Over 12 years helium corrupts everything helium touches, turning a 'beacon of democracy' into his idiosyncratic fiefdom, earlier dragging it into the acheronian clutches of Russia. By the clip the radical person noticed – it's excessively late. 

All this, of course, conducted from his hilltop lair wherever helium ritually humiliates his minions successful beforehand of a vessel filled with sharks.

Sound implausible? Then conscionable Bidzina Ivanishvili, the cold, calculating recluse who rules the Black Sea federation of Georgia from the shadows.

Last summertime helium succeeded successful defying his radical to determination the fiercely pro-Western federation towards Moscow's sphere – and this period helium appears acceptable to manus Vladimir Putin 1 of his top ever victories.

Ivanishvili's authorities yet pushed done a 'foreign agents' instrumentality successful May pursuing weeks of unit wherever masked authorities thugs bushed opponents to wrong inches of death. 

The authorities requires each NGOs and media organisations that person implicit 20 per cent of backing from overseas to registry arsenic overseas agents – virtually 'spies' successful Georgian.

On the surface, the progressively autocratic authorities of a small, distant state simply passed a draconian measure that volition clamp down connected opponents to triumph the Georgian elections connected October 26. 

But those that cognize Ivanishvili champion pass it is portion of a bigger crippled by Putin designed to crush Ukrainian morale, undermine Western sanctions, and usher successful the USSR 2.0. 

Now, helped by a full nonaccomplishment of European backbone, helium stands connected the cusp of succeeding.

So, who is Georgia's shadiness ruler – and wherefore does this federation location to conscionable 3.7million radical connected Russia's confederate borderline matter? 

Today Daily Mail pieces unneurotic his stranger-than-fiction communicative and a sinister crippled that should dependable alarm bells crossed the civilised world.

Having grown up successful abject poorness successful Chorvila, a tiny colony successful occidental Georgia, Ivanishvili moved to Russia to marque his $7 cardinal luck arsenic 1 of the archetypal oligarchs during the 'wild' 1990s. 

Here helium earned his nickname, 'Udav', meaning 'Boa Constrictor' successful Russian, a motion to however helium would ruthlessly suffocate rival businesses. 

He returned to his homeland successful the aboriginal noughties conscionable arsenic it threw disconnected the shackles of post-Soviet enactment with the 2003 Rose Revolution to go the astir pro-Western federation successful the region. 

Georgia's aversion to Russian imperialism was cemented pursuing Putin's 2008 penetration wherever helium seized 2 breakaway regions successful a precursor to the warfare with Ukraine.

Ivanishvili, a 'freakishly calm' antheral who 'exudes an bonzer self-confidence', had to guarantee allies connected his instrumentality that helium was nary Moscow agent. 

'He told maine arsenic soon arsenic helium saw Putin connected TV, and his mode of walking, helium decided this feline would not fto him run with immoderate state - truthful helium packed his bags and moved to Georgia,' says Ghia Khukhashvili, his erstwhile advisor.

For his archetypal decennary backmost home, Ivanishvili - returning with a luck worthy 1 5th of Georgia's GDP - stayed retired of politics. He remained a semi-mythical figure, gathering a 'James Bond villain lair' overlooking the capital, Tbilisi, from which helium showered artists, intellectuals and the religion with money. 

Notoriously reclusive, helium stayed successful the solid mansion wherever helium keeps favored dolphins, sharks, penguins and flamingos. 

But then, successful 2011, the Messiah came down from the hilltop and created a caller governmental enactment – Georgian Dream.

Ivanishvili offered anticipation to the splintered absorption and achieved the intolerable by uniting them to decision the progressively autocratic ruling authorities the pursuing year. 

He promised his backers helium would region the erstwhile medication earlier resigning from politics. 

But, having kept his connection to measurement down arsenic Prime Minister aft 1 year, it rapidly became wide that the Boa Constrictor had nary volition of relinquishing his grip connected power.

'He was going retired of politics, past abruptly helium decided that helium is the boss,' says Giorgi Margvelashvili, who served arsenic a curate nether Ivanishvili but, connected becoming President successful 2014, chopped ties erstwhile the billionaire had started undermining his authority.

A elder US diplomat successful Georgia besides noticed aboriginal informing signs, remarking however helium erstwhile asked a stunned American delegation 'what bash I truly person to do' to get into NATO by 2016 – having been unpersuaded by their suggestions of antiauthoritarian reforms. 

'He couldn't get his caput astir wherefore things similar quality rights and regularisation of instrumentality were necessary,' they said. 

The diplomat besides noted however helium 'hates being lectured – particularly from women'.

Though not holding nationalist bureau since 2013, Ivanishvili has maintained power implicit Georgia by placing adjacent associates successful complaint of cardinal institutions. 

His idiosyncratic bodyguard became Minister of Internal Affairs, his wife's doc became Health Minister, and 3 retired of the past 4 Prime Ministers were employed successful his companies.

'The Prime Minister of Georgia serves astatine the pleasance of Bidzina,' Lincoln Mitchell, erstwhile an informal advisor to Ivanishvili from the US, says. 

'Access to Bidzina is the astir invaluable governmental plus successful the Georgian government.'

True to his Bond villain image, Ivanishvili would crook ministers to his volition with a summons to his concern centre - wherever helium keeps a vessel afloat of sharks to 'underline his cognition to business'. 

'Bidzina is devoid of emotions,' Georgian governmental guru Mr Khukhashvili says. 'Once helium is dissatisfied with someone, helium sits them down successful the concern centre and explains to them what they did wrong. 

He volition repetition it 100 times to grind this feline down until determination is simply a final, full motivation demolition of him. 

An important facet is that others are watching this. It does not substance astatine what constituent you admit your guilt, what matters is erstwhile Bidzina thinks that you are afloat and utterly destroyed psychologically. Then helium releases you.'

For Mr Khukhashvili, portion Ivanishvili keeps galore exotic pets, they are conscionable for show; it is his emotion of trees that is much important to recognize him. 

The eccentric has made headlines for uprooting trees helium likes and transporting them thousands of miles to his mansion wherever helium plants them successful his ain 'Garden of Eden'. 

'He loves trees due to the fact that trees cannot speech back,' Mr Khukhashvili says. 

'Animals person a escaped will, and they mightiness not beryllium consenting to entertain Bidzina's desires – helium is not a instrumentality of that. 

'The aforesaid Garden of Eden attack is prevalent successful his authorities arsenic well. Those helium has psychologically evaporated, helium has turned them into a histrion to plant. He plants the Prime Ministers and precocious authorities officials conscionable similar trees.'

For 10 years Ivanishvili softly uprooted Georgia to his ain ends, sending the state tumbling down rankings for transparency and ideology arsenic helium co-opted the state, the courts and the banks. 

While expanding commercialized to Russia, however, Georgian Dream besides maintained its committedness to the EU and NATO, adjacent penning the tendency to articulation the alliances successful the country's constitution. 

This was captious to clasp powerfulness successful the fiercely anti-Russia country. It was lone erstwhile Putin invaded Ukraine, though, that Ivanishvili was forced to uncover his hand.

'Now the chess committee is visible,' says Mr Khukhashvili, the wily advisor who paved Ivanishvili's emergence to powerfulness earlier they fell retired and chopped ties. 

'He made a calculation that the warfare would beryllium implicit successful 1 month, Russia would afloat sorb and inhabit Ukraine and commencement gathering immoderate benignant of modernised Soviet Union, and that the adjacent people would beryllium Georgia. 

He was frightened to decease due to the fact that arsenic helium himself is simply a God successful Georgia, there's an full pantheon of Gods successful which Putin qualifies arsenic Zeus. So, helium started preparing for that eventuality.'

Within 48 hours of Putin's invasion, Georgian Dream began pumping retired pro-Russian propaganda – and has refused to authorisation the Kremlin. 

While Ukraine did not fall, the West has not backed Kyiv sufficiently and Ivanishvili inactive bets connected Putin.

His enactment introduced a raft of draconian authorities including the 'foreign agents' instrumentality that volition crush dissent, homophobic anti-LGBT diktats designed to torpedo wide Western aspirations, and an offshore measure that could spot Ivanishvili go the 'Kremlin's cashier'. 

The second allows offshore assets to beryllium transferred to Georgia taxation escaped wherever the shadiness ruler's tame judges could, theoretically, support them from sanctions. 

This portion Georgians shed the astir humor of immoderate federation arsenic volunteers warring beside their Ukrainian comrades with whom they person a shared humanities brotherhood resisting Russia.

How could a radical truthful fiercely pro-Western judge this shift? Mr Margvelashvili says it is acknowledgment to a exemplary of authorities that began astir from the infinitesimal Ivanishvili took power, and which has gradually dispersed apathy amongst the people. 

'It is simply a classical Russian format of governance,' says Mr Margvelashvili, who this summertime joined the For Georgia absorption party. 

'The full conception is that everything is rotten, everything is worthless – it is immoderate benignant of fatalism. He undermines authorities institutions completely, going gradually done and discrediting each furniture of government.  

'Not lone government, not lone autarkic players similar the president's office, oregon NGOs, oregon the media, helium was discrediting his ain government. 

'You discredit everyplace and past you archer the nine – wherefore bash you attraction astir the change? Everyone is worthless.'

All this to scope 1 extremity – Georgia, erstwhile a darling of the West, to autumn backmost nether Moscow's boot. 

That, successful short, is what's astatine involvement travel October 26. A Georgian Dream triumph would correspond possibly Putin's top triumph and, Ivanishvili hopes, delight him capable to assistance sphere the oligarch's rule. 

Were Georgia, the federation which resisted Russia earlier Ukraine, to present go different Belarus it would nonstop a wide connection to Kyiv that they cannot flight specified a fate. 

This would magnitude to a devastating geopolitical U-turn, nonstop a chill crossed the post-Soviet sphere and usher successful a caller robust curtain that closes Europe's gateway to the East.

'Georgia is portion of a bigger communicative for Russia's propaganda,' Mr Margvelashvili says. 

'The West doesn't recognize what Georgia is - Russia is speaking for the countries that were portion of the Soviet Union. For each of them the connection is precise clear. Putin is saying to Ukraine sure, combat us. You die, we dice - but successful the extremity you volition beryllium similar Georgia.'

There is, however, 1 origin the scheming oligarch seemingly did not expect – Gen Z. 

Far from the apathy helium expected aft years of rot, hundreds of thousands of young radical took to the streets to protestation his plan. 

The crowds were the largest the state has ever seen – bigger adjacent than those that sparked the Rose Revolution. 

Ivanishvili was forced to deploy 'domestic terror' against his ain radical to propulsion done the 'foreign agents' instrumentality successful May, astir surely stifling immoderate hopes of winning a escaped and just election.

All this near the Boa Constrictor successful a bind. Unable to triumph fairly, rigging the elections could spark a revolution.

In specified a scenario, an involution from Moscow is unlikely. Both parties would beryllium unwilling to invitation Russian troops to uphold bid arsenic it would harden Western resoluteness successful Ukraine and unite Georgians. 

That is if they could adjacent spare the troops, which is improbable fixed their struggles with Kyiv.

Crucially, the usage of unit to betray the people's volition prompted the EU and the US to endanger the ruling enactment with sanctions. 

A European question prohibition would beryllium peculiarly devastating to Ivanishvili and his 4 jet-setting children, and awesome to his Georgian Dream minions that their Messiah mightiness beryllium human. (He promised them the West would not travel through). 

Most importantly, restricting the movements and wealth of these politicians would awesome to the people, truthful disheartened aft the archetypal nonaccomplishment of wide protests successful Georgia's modern history, that their voices had been heard.

But implicit the past 5 months, Europe has allowed Ivanishvili to wriggle free. America has mostly pulled its punches too, nevertheless astatine slightest Washington deed a fewer twelve Georgian Dream members with question bans and has reportedly debanked Ivanishvili's family.

In Brussels, thing of immoderate enactment has materialised. Despite the rhetoric, nary European state has adjacent imposed a question ban. 

Indeed, arsenic Georgians basked successful their shot team's legendary tally to the past 16 successful the Euro's this summertime – the archetypal clip they person made the finals - they were besides forced to ticker Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Khobakidze and different Ivanishvili minions soak up the matches transportation broadside successful Germany.

This each sent a wide awesome to the Georgian radical that the West does not attraction for them – a taxable which Ivanishvili has ruthlessly exploited. 

Across the state Georgian Dream predetermination billboards person been erected with pictures of Ukrainian cities destroyed by Russian bombs nether the elemental caption: 'Choose peace'. 

The unspoken connection being Moscow is close, the West is far, truthful support quiescent and judge your fate.

As Georgians caput to the polls, they are successful request of much than lukewarm words from Brussels. 

Europe indispensable marque bully connected their promises present – and not aft the state has already go Belarus 2.0. Ivanishvili has stake the protesters volition go apathetic. 

For Georgia, Ukraine and the West, it indispensable beryllium hoped that Ivanishvili has miscalculated and that, dissimilar his beloved trees, the Georgian radical volition not entertain the recluse's desires.