phone call between Sanikidze and Russia-based former State Security Minister Valery Khaburzania, where the former offered Khaburzania money in exchange for facilitating the release of a thief-in-law from Russian prison. Another recording released later heard Sanikidze stating he did not care about political career and was seeking ways to "become a millionaire". He has denied the veracity of the audio recordings and no formal investigation has been made on the matter. Despite those scandals, Gubaz Sanikidze defeated his opponents and won just as Georgian Dream swept a victory across Georgia. With the ruling coalition As an MP elected from the ruling party coalition, Gubaz Sanikidze became one of the highest-ranking members of Parliament, selected as Chairman of the Diaspora and Caucasus Affairs Committee as a personal choice of Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili. As such, he advocated for the authorities to launch closer relations with the North Caucasus, stating that Georgia should integrate the European Union "not as Europeans, but as Caucasian Europeans". Supporting more activity on the integration of ethnic minorities, he announced an internship program within his committee for ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis. In Parliament, he also chaired the Parliamentary Coordination Council for Legislative Processes with the Abkhazian and Adjarian Autonomous Republics, and served on the 2016 Constitutional Commission that made Georgia a full parliamentary republic. A strong supporter of decentralization, he backed a bill that would have created consultative bodies for regional governors and expanded mayoral elections across the country. Throughout his term, he was one of the most unpopular members of the ruling coalition, the only Georgian Dream leader with net unfavorable ratings. Sanikidze backed closer ties between Georgia and Iran and chaired the Georgia-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group. He visited Tehran three times in 2014 and 2015, while calling on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work towards deepening bilateral ties. He welcomed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, calling the nuclear deal "a chance for huge opportunities for Georgia". He was part of the governmental delegation led by Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili to China in 2015 that negotiated a free trade agreement. He has claimed having personally prevented an Arabic country from recognizing the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, although not naming which one (Syria recognized the two separatist republics in 2018, while some Jordanian MPs publicly voiced support in 2019). This claim was denied by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first fissure within