“We do not intend Georgia to be a pawn on Ukraine’s grand chessboard that can simply be sacrificed with one wave of the hand. Our steps stem from Georgia’s interests,” stated Levan Makhashvili, Chairman of Parliament’s European Integration Committee. “We see this game, and our steps derive from ensuring Georgia’s interests are protected. Because of this, we have to make relatively tough statements.”

According to Makhashvili, specific states use EU institutions to advance their interests against other countries.

“Is there blackmail against Georgia? It is a fact that specific states exist, specifically the Baltic states, which use EU institutions to advance their interests against other countries. Of course, they are EU member states and have the resources to influence EU institutions; however, EU institutions are being maliciously used to achieve their national interests. We see an unfortunate trend where instead of the EU working unitedly considering its interests, it somehow becomes a victim of some states’ political games,” Makhashvili stated.