EU Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski and Swedish Ambassador Ulrik Tideström on Monday delivered a formal demarche to the Justice Minister Rati Bregadze concerning jailed ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili.

Herczynski said: “we are very concerned about reports of his [Saakashvili] deteriorating health. What is very important is that this demarche has been agreed by 27 EU member states.”

“We had a very open and very frank exchange with the Minister of Justice. We have presented the EU position as agreed by the 27 EU member states, and the Minister of Justice has informed us about what the Georgian government is doing in order to preserve the rights of the former president Mikheil Saakashvili, the rights as a defendant and the rights of the prisoner. Actually, it was not the first time that we talked. I paid a visit to the Minister of Justice immediately after my arrival in Tbilisi as a new EU ambassador.

Later in December, there was another meeting of a Minister with EU Ambassadors. So, this is a dialogue that is ongoing. This time the difference was that I was asked to present to the Minister of Justice the EU position as agreed by 27 EU member states. I have ongoing dialogue with the Prime Minister, as well. I meet President from time to time and we discuss very openly all the issues,” Herczynski noted.