“Against the backdrop of personal blackmail, I believe that a meeting with the ambassador and discussions on state affairs are inappropriate,” Bidzina Ivanishvili, Honourary Chairman of the Georgian Dream party, responded to the statement by the U.S. Embassy in Georgia published earlier today.

“Today, the U.S. Embassy in Georgia issued a statement regarding my refusal on May 22 to meet with the American ambassador, during which I was supposed to receive a message from the ‘Trump administration’. I find this statement perplexing, as the embassy is fully aware of all the details related to this matter.

I confirm that several days ago, the embassy did communicate with Georgia’s Prime Minister and other government officials about arranging a meeting. The American ambassador informed Georgia’s Prime Minister that she wished to meet with me to “convey Secretary Rubio’s message.” While I hold deep respect for the office and the individuals involved, I ultimately declined the meeting.

I have previously publicly explained the reasons for my refusal to meet with the American side, and those reasons remain unchanged. I recall that, under conditions of personal blackmail, I also declined a meeting with Mr. O’Brien last year, when only informal sanctions were in place against me. Before that, I received several offers to meet and declined each time for the same reasons, which I also communicated in writing to the previous administration on multiple occasions.

Since the time of the previous administration, the American side has imposed both informal and formal sanctions against me. (The informal sanctions are particularly severe; for instance, the Swiss bank Julius Baer has arrogantly refused to return funds I won through the courts, despite these funds not being subject to any formal sanctions. American lawyers are also involved in this matter.)

In light of such personal blackmail, I believe that meeting with the ambassador and discussing state affairs would be inappropriate. Under these circumstances, I would inevitably feel a conflict—that I am making decisions on national issues as a counterbalance to my personal interests—which is fundamentally unacceptable to me. This internal struggle would persist even if I believed that reaching an agreement could be beneficial for both sides. Furthermore, this conflict would not only affect me personally but would also influence my team and society as a whole.

I want to emphasize that my personal interests have never taken precedence over national interests, neither in 2012 nor a decade later, in 2022. It was during the year 2022—precisely to serve the best interests of the state—that I placed my personal interests at the greatest risk.

I would also like to recall that last autumn, when the implementation of informal sanctions was temporarily suspended and certain funds were released, I personally offered to meet with the American ambassador. She initially agreed, but the meeting was postponed several times and was ultimately cancelled altogether.

I am so committed to resetting Georgian-American relations that I even informed the American side of my readiness to use the blocked funds for any purpose they suggested, rather than for personal gain. Money has never been my concern, neither before nor now. I clearly explained that the blocked funds create a difficult situation—on one hand, and on the other, foster a feeling that I should not make any decisions under blackmail. However, I received no response to this offer. Consequently, it became evident to me that the Biden administration’s interest was not in the money itself, but rather in using it as a tool to exert pressure and blackmail me.

I would like to clarify that, in addition to the refusal, we also offered the ambassador a meeting with Georgia’s Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is not subject to any formal or informal sanctions and therefore has no reason to be influenced by personal blackmail. However, the ambassador declined this offer as well, which reinforces our belief that they are primarily interested in using personal blackmail as the main factor in influencing Georgia’s decision-making regarding national interests.

They may claim that, as the founder and honourary chairman of the ruling party, I possess special influence over decision-making. However, I want to assure you that within the ruling party, no principled decision is made without the active involvement of the team, especially the Prime Minister. This underscores that the demand to meet exclusively with me can only be interpreted in one way—that such a meeting is valued solely as a means of personal blackmail.

I hope that the U.S. Embassy will respond positively to the Georgian government’s proposal to renew the Georgian-American strategic partnership from a clean slate, accompanied by a clear and concrete roadmap. Each leader within Georgia’s government has expressed full readiness, should there be genuine interest from the American side, to actively engage in the process of resetting and strengthening Georgian-American relations,” reads Bidzina Ivanishvili’s statement.