The News in Brief
Thursday, March 16, 2023
Prepared by Messenger Staff
'Foreign Agents' Law Was Deliberate Provocation From Georgian Dream, MEP Andrius Kubilius Says
Member of European Parliament Andrius Kubilius said that Georgians have a problem achieving the strategic goal to join the European Union and the reason for it is Bidzina Ivanishvili.
Andrius Kubilius accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of creating a provocation by presenting 'Foreign Agents' law.
In Kubilius's words, the members of the formal and informal authorities are united in their tactics to create new problems on the path of Georgia's European integration:
"That's why Mikheil Saakashvili and Nika Gvaramia are in prison, and that's why we became eyewitnesses of history about 'foreign agents'. The initiative of the 'foreign agent' law was a deliberate provocation by the Georgian government, which was directed against the Georgian people. This behavior of the government is absolutely contrary to what the European Union demands from Georgia, i.e. depolarization of political life. It is very good that the Georgian people were able to protect their own path to European integration, but we should not be naive, this is not the last political and anti-European provocation of the government.
Prime Minister of Georgia Gharibashvili made an important statement. I quote: "The European Parliament should take care of itself, the MEPs are involved in a corruption scandal, their goal was to drag Georgia into the war and destroy it together with Ukraine." The Kremlin should be jealous of such propaganda, but it does not lead to the status of a candidate, although we will continue to stand by the Georgian people," said Andrews Kubilius during the debate on the current situation in Georgia in the European Parliament.
MEP Nacho Sánchez Amor Thinks EU Not Giving Georgia Candidacy Status Strengthened Ruling party's Anti-European Narrative
MEP Nacho Sánchez Amor said that not putting Georgia in the same line as other countries to which the European Union offered candidate status was a mistake because it strengthened the anti-European narrative of the Georgian Dream.
"I refuse to choose this false dichotomy between a jailed former president who has been advised by many sitting here not to return to the country and who entered the country illegally during the election campaign, and a government whose tendency toward authoritarianism is becoming increasingly apparent.
However, it seems that we agree to support civil society, and from there, I mean pro-democracy and pro-European civil society, we will be able to reach a consensus. I repeat that it was a mistake when we did not put Georgia in the same line with other countries that we offered candidate status, because it strengthened the anti-European narrative of the Georgian Dream.
We opened up a lot of space to fill this anti-European narrative, and it certainly didn't help to end the polarization that, as we said, we were already worried about. Now we have to rearrange the levers of our influence on the country in a situation that is much worse than it was a few months ago, although this is our obligation. I urge you all to support the civil society and not get involved in false dichotomies," said Nacho Sánchez Amor.
'Foreign Agents' Law Was Deliberate Provocation From Georgian Dream, MEP Andrius Kubilius Says
Andrius Kubilius accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of creating a provocation by presenting 'Foreign Agents' law.
In Kubilius's words, the members of the formal and informal authorities are united in their tactics to create new problems on the path of Georgia's European integration:
"That's why Mikheil Saakashvili and Nika Gvaramia are in prison, and that's why we became eyewitnesses of history about 'foreign agents'. The initiative of the 'foreign agent' law was a deliberate provocation by the Georgian government, which was directed against the Georgian people. This behavior of the government is absolutely contrary to what the European Union demands from Georgia, i.e. depolarization of political life. It is very good that the Georgian people were able to protect their own path to European integration, but we should not be naive, this is not the last political and anti-European provocation of the government.
Prime Minister of Georgia Gharibashvili made an important statement. I quote: "The European Parliament should take care of itself, the MEPs are involved in a corruption scandal, their goal was to drag Georgia into the war and destroy it together with Ukraine." The Kremlin should be jealous of such propaganda, but it does not lead to the status of a candidate, although we will continue to stand by the Georgian people," said Andrews Kubilius during the debate on the current situation in Georgia in the European Parliament.
MEP Nacho Sánchez Amor Thinks EU Not Giving Georgia Candidacy Status Strengthened Ruling party's Anti-European Narrative
"I refuse to choose this false dichotomy between a jailed former president who has been advised by many sitting here not to return to the country and who entered the country illegally during the election campaign, and a government whose tendency toward authoritarianism is becoming increasingly apparent.
However, it seems that we agree to support civil society, and from there, I mean pro-democracy and pro-European civil society, we will be able to reach a consensus. I repeat that it was a mistake when we did not put Georgia in the same line with other countries that we offered candidate status, because it strengthened the anti-European narrative of the Georgian Dream.
We opened up a lot of space to fill this anti-European narrative, and it certainly didn't help to end the polarization that, as we said, we were already worried about. Now we have to rearrange the levers of our influence on the country in a situation that is much worse than it was a few months ago, although this is our obligation. I urge you all to support the civil society and not get involved in false dichotomies," said Nacho Sánchez Amor.