The Georgian Foreign Minister, Maka Botchorishvili, responded to the statement by European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos.

According to Maka Botchorishvili, first, “the Georgian government was accused of allegedly halting a process that had not even begun, and now we hear from the European Commission that it turns out we have been punished.”

“We are well aware of the true reason behind the suspension of political dialogue with Georgia. The European Union granted Georgia candidate status after a year and a half waiting, yet suspended the accession process—something that had not even started. No negotiations have been opened with us. The decision made regarding Ukraine and Moldova was not applied to Georgia.

At this moment, we want to make it clear: we do not want this tool to be used against us, nor do we request negotiations to be initiated until such a decision is made. When it became clear that they were losing control over this process, the narrative abruptly changed, and the blame was shifted onto the Georgian government as if we had halted a process that had not even begun. Now, once again, we hear from the European Commission that it turns out we have been the ones punished,” the Foreign Minister emphasized.