Georgia accuses Polish leaders of lobbying for ex president Saakashvili

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili has publicly accused Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski of actively lobbying on behalf of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.

During a speech delivered in the Polish Sejm on June 11, Prime Minister Tusk announced Poland’s intention to advocate within the European Union for either the cancellation or significant restriction of visa-free travel privileges currently enjoyed by Georgian citizens across the bloc, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

Responding to these developments, Papuashvili condemned the Polish leadership’s support for Saakashvili, branding them as his political lobbyists. “The current Polish government, the prime minister, the foreign minister are lobbyists of Mikheil Saakashvili,” Papuashvili stated.

He recalled the European People’s Party congresses, where Donald Tusk, as party leader, publicly read a letter from Saakashvili penned during his imprisonment. Papuashvili described Saakashvili as “a criminal, a man who created a system of torture,” highlighting the former president’s controversial legacy.

The Georgian parliamentarian also criticized Foreign Minister Sikorski, noting that despite Saakashvili’s alleged past, Sikorski continues to refer to him as “a moderniser and an exemplary democrat.”

“We also remember he declarations by Foreign Minister Sikorski, who even to this day describes Saakashvili—the architect of a regime marked by torture and racketeering—as a modernizer and an exemplary democrat,” Papuashvili told reporters, pointing out his disapproval of Poland’s position.

By Vafa Guliyeva