“They know very well that the loan issue is basically a trick and will be difficult to implement,” said Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili, responding to a question on EU leaders who have struck a late-night deal to lend Ukraine €90bn (£79bn; $105bn) over the next two years, after failing to agree on using frozen Russian assets.

“They failed to reach an agreement on the use of frozen Russian assets, and this was somehow a way out of the situation. They acknowledge that the loan issue is basically a trick and will be difficult to implement. This country is sold, and this is how the processes unfold,” Kavelashvili said.

According to Mikheil Kavelashvili, “our country’s national interests should be foremost.”

“The more complicated the processes become and the more visible the crisis becomes, the more challenges we should expect. We are ready for that, and our society should be prepared. We should cope with the crisis that is created in the European Union.

We cannot and will not turn our backs; we have our own interests. There are great opportunities, many important projects are being implemented, and we must be a part of them. Europe cannot renounce us, and we cannot renounce Europe. This is important.

Let us follow the processes. We are ready to respond to our society and everyone with a fair approach and based on facts; meanwhile, we should not allow those forces, who internationally or unintentionally are hostile to Georgia, to hinder projects that are important to us and the development of our society,” he concluded.