PM Kobakhidze: European People’s Party demands sanctions on Georgian authorities

Georgian Prime Minister (PM) Irakli Kobakhidze has criticised the European People’s Party for demanding sanctions instead of condemning the overthrow of power.

The EPP has urged the EU to impose sanctions on those “undermining the foundations of human rights and the rule of law in Georgia, Caliber.Az reports, citing Georgian media. 

Kobakhidze argued that such statements highlight for Georgian society the consequences of the EU’s loss of sovereignty and externally managed bureaucracy. 

He emphasised that the EPP targets Bidzina Ivanishvili and other ruling leaders, rather than the “perpetrators and enemies of Georgian democracy.” 

The prime minister also noted that several countries and organisations, including the US, the EU, and individual EU states, have not condemned or distanced themselves from the attempted government overthrow and the violent storming of the Georgian presidential palace. 

Kobakhidze added that, in light of this silence, Georgian society must question the value of statements from these states and organisations, noting that such declarations, coming from those openly frustrated with the Georgian people and their uncompromising pursuit of peace, carry no significance now or in the future.

By Khagan Isayev