Georgian Parliament Adopts Resolution in Support of Ukraine

By Khatia Bzhalava

Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Opposition politicians refused to sign the draft citing that the text does not mention Russia as the aggressor country.

“Georgia condemns any intention that may be directed against the territorial integrity of the sovereign state, which poses a new threat not only to Ukraine but to regional peace and security,” the resolution reads.

Georgian Parliament adopted the resolution in support of Ukraine initiated by the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party with 74 votes pro and none against. The draft resolution was not signed by any opposition parties as Russian Federation is not mentioned in any of the points of the document. Opposition parties believe that the Russian Federation must be mentioned as an aggressor for the text to be considered valid.

The Georgian Dream refused to mention a possible “Russian military aggression” in the draft, arguing the document was free of “provocative rhetoric.” The opposition parties assessed GD’s approach as a non-irritation policy toward Moscow and, therefore, refused to support the document.

According to the leader of the Republican Party Khatuna Samnidze, the opposition will not initiate an alternative resolution, because it is a matter of principle for them to ensure that the resolution has universal support. According to her, the presented text does not reflect either the position of the Georgian people or the position of the country.

one of the leaders of Lelo, Badri Japaridze said at the plenary session of the parliament that the correct resolution of the parliament will be the one where it would be mentioned that the source of the danger of escalation and hostilities is the Russian Federation. He also recalled the request made by the Verkhovna Rada, where Georgia is directly asked to condemn Russia's actions against Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Before adopting the document, Khatia Dekanoidze, chairwoman of the United National Movement faction, proposed to the ruling team to agree on the resolution text first, noting that when it comes to the dignity and security of Georgia, it is important that the Parliament adopts a joint text.

EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell has welcomed the resolution in support of Ukraine, however, noted that formulation of the resolution text is a complex issue’ and expressed hope that in the end, the draft resolution would have broad support among the Georgian lawmakers.

The resolution prepared by the Georgian Dream expresses concern over the possible military escalation in Ukraine and condemns any intention that may be directed against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a sovereign state.

“The Georgian Parliament declares that joining NATO is a sovereign right of the state and any attempt to restrict it by military-political means is categorically unacceptable. The Parliament believes that the prevention of war in Ukraine should be a major concern for the international community,” the resolution reads.