The Gazprom Slip: Georgia Scrambles After State Secrets Leak on Official Portal

For several hours, the official portal of the Georgian government inadvertently hosted sensitive information that authorities would have preferred to remain sequestered from public scrutiny. The disclosure pertained to the procurement of Russian gas from Gazprom. The document was identified by investigators from the OCCRP, and shortly after its details were broadcast, the page vanished abruptly, prompting security services to allege a potential cyberattack.

The controversy originated with amendments to a March 2025 government decree regulating gas acquisitions by the state-owned Georgian Oil & Gas Corporation. The text made reference to classified appendices designated as “commercial secrets.” The independent broadcaster Formula reported that these very appendices contained the granular details of contracts with the state-controlled Russian entity, Gazprom.

During a pre-recorded segment, journalist Eliso Jariashvili documented the presence of the files, noting that as of late afternoon on January 12, the decree remained accessible on the government’s digital portal. While the final broadcast featured blurred versions of the documents, an earlier promotional teaser displayed a fragment explicitly mentioning the Gazprom purchases. Following this exposure, the document was swiftly excised from the site.

Jariashvili informed the Monitori center that she had sought clarification from the government administration prior to the report’s release, only to be told that the data was strictly classified. Subsequently, investigative authorities contacted her, warning against the dissemination of the document. By January 15, the State Security Service of Georgia initiated a criminal probe into an “alleged cyberattack” and “manipulation” of the official website, claiming the incident was a calculated attempt to propagate falsehoods and jeopardize national interests. Both the media and the public were exhorted to refrain from circulating the leaked material.

The journalist maintains that her actions were entirely within legal bounds, as the state itself had placed the document in the public domain. She asserts that the decree confirms an escalation in Russian gas imports, with a portion of the volume acquired at inflated rates. These revelations coincide with recent data from Gazprom indicating that gas exports to Georgia surged by 40.4% in 2025. Government officials have expressed bewilderment as to how classified intelligence could have surfaced on the official site and have declined further comment pending the conclusion of the investigation.