Irakli Kobakhidze, chair of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party, stated that the government has ruled out engaging in consultations with Ukraine over the case of ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili.

As Irakli Kobakhidze pointed out, the Georgian Ambassador in Ukraine, Giorgi Zakarashvili, has been in Ukraine from the beginning of the war, unlike the ambassadors of Ukraine’s other strategic partners.

“Despite the fact that Russian tanks were stationed in Kyiv, our ambassador stayed in the Ukrainian capital on a daily basis and took care of many things; his contribution in terms of humanitarian and political support was crucial. Given this, the Ukrainian government’s decision is offensive, unfortunate, and disappointing. Nevertheless, we will not make any remarks. We intend to maintain our one-sided friendship with Ukrainian authorities,” he explained.

On July 4, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said the Georgian government should stop the abuse of the Ukrainian citizen Mikheil Saakashvili and asked the Georgian ambassador to return to Tbilisi to resolve the situation.

“In this regard, it was proposed to Ambassador of Georgia to Ukraine, Giorgi Zakarashvili, to return to Tbilisi for consultations to find ways to solve the situation,” the Ministry said.