Georgia refuses to participate at PACE hearing

Georgia refused to participate in the hearing of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Paris, on January 17, dedicated to the discussion of the dossier on the outcome of the 2008 Russian-Georgian war. The Georgian side stated the authorities could not see any possible positive results of the hearing.

As the chair of the parliamentary committee on European Integration, Davit Darchiashvili stated “A lot of things have been revealed lately, which made us think that the actual meeting will have no positive outcomes.” He mentioned that the European Council has adopted 5 resolutions in recent years, with different recommendations for Russia, however the recommendations have been completely ignored by the Russians. Darchiashvili also mentioned that the “Russian side wants to adopt the document which would recover those 5 resolutions.” The Committee head is sure that many countries in the Council will not play Russia’s game, however there will be some who will support Russia.

The parliamentary opposition believes this step is “logical”. According to Nika Laliashvili from Christian - Democratic Movement, “Georgia’s participation in the hearing has no meaning, as the resolutions made by the Council are being ignored. This step from Georgian authorities can be considered as logical and not a sign of protest.”

According to analyst Zurab Abashidze, “I cannot rule out that the Georgian side is tired of going round and round in the same circle. However, I am also doubtful that this protest might bring any result for Georgia.”