MP Kirtskhalia: EU criticism of Georgia should be followed by discussion, but Brussels avoids dialogue

Irakli Kirtskhalia, leader of the parliamentary majority, said criticism from Brussels should always be followed by a constructive discussion, accusing EU officials and their representatives in Georgia of refusing to engage in dialogue.

“When we see criticism coming from Brussels, it should always be followed by a healthy discussion. This is what we are demanding today as well. However, neither they, nor their diplomats, nor the agents they control are willing to engage in a discussion,” Kirtskhalia said.

According to Kirtskhalia, it is difficult to engage in dialogue with Georgians while demanding that they refrain from adopting a transparency law.

“Apparently, the European path is defined by a lack of transparency. It is difficult to enter into a discussion when you tell Georgians, or any self-respecting nation, that banning an LGBT+ campaign is supposedly un-European.

It is difficult to hold a discussion when you tell Georgians that a man should supposedly be able to go to a Public Service Hall and change into a woman. It is difficult to engage in dialogue when you tell Georgians that same-sex marriage is a European value. They have been talking for years about repealing these laws.

It is difficult to engage in a discussion with the government and society when you tell Georgians that setting a police officer on fire, throwing Molotov cocktails and pursuing revolutionary scenarios constitute freedom of expression. It is difficult to say and defend such things to Georgians. That is why we hear such brazen statements.

They are the authors of the major deception in which the law was branded the ‘Russian law.’ It is difficult for them to explain why this law is Russian. That is why we hear such brazen statements. These very statements cast a shadow over their reputation and the values on which the European Union was founded.

We see surveys conducted within the EU itself showing the impressions and views of people in EU member states regarding the policies pursued by the Brussels elite,” Kirtskhalia said.

For context, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said at the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg that the Georgian people want a European future, but Georgian Dream is systematically depriving them of it, adding that “Our current approach is not generating sufficient pressure for change, nor is it allowing us to fully pursue European strategic interests. We will revert to this topic in January.”