Georgia’s ruling party said on Thursday it was dropping a bill on “foreign agents” after two nights of violent protests against what opponents said was a Russian-inspired authoritarian shift that imperilled hopes of the country joining the EU.

The Georgian Dream ruling party said in a statement it would “unconditionally withdraw the bill we supported without any reservations”. It cited the need to reduce “confrontation” in society, while also denouncing “lies” told about the bill by the “radical opposition”.

The bill would have required Georgian organisations receiving more than 20 per cent of their funding from abroad to register as “foreign agents” or face fines. Georgian Dream had previously said the law was necessary to unmask critics of the Georgian Orthodox Church, one of the country’s most powerful institutions.

The EU’s delegation to Georgia praised the decision to withdraw the bill, writing on Twitter: “We welcome the announcement by the ruling party to withdraw draft legislation on ‘foreign influence’. We encourage all political leaders in Georgia to resume pro-EU reforms, in an inclusive & constructive way”.