Luxembourg’s FM rejects punitive measures against Georgia over election outcome

Luxembourg’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Xavier Bettel has said that Georgia should not be punished for the outcome of its elections, even if the results do not meet the expectations of the EU. 

Bettel emphasised that sanctions against Tbilisi over the election results are unacceptable, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

“For me, the key issue is whether there were any violations. We cannot punish a country just because we don't like the results,” the diplomat stressed.

He added that, first and foremost, it is essential to verify whether any irregularities occurred during the elections, especially since there were hundreds of observers present. 

Earlier, EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas stated that the EU intends to impose personal sanctions on certain Georgian politicians.

However, she acknowledged that there is still no consensus on this issue. She also noted that there is no clear agreement yet on which specific restrictions should be imposed. 

“We will discuss the consequences for the Georgian government over its use of repression against the opposition, as well as other measures they have resorted to. The sanctions list is already under discussion, but we have not reached a unanimous decision yet,” Kallas said.

At the same time, Kallas emphasised that there is still no clear understanding of which specific restrictions should be imposed. One proposed measure is the potential suspension of the visa-free regime for several Georgian politicians.

By Naila Huseynova