Papuashvili: Georgian delegation will return to PACE the moment the assembly returns to basic principles of international law

“The European Conference of Presidents of Parliament in Rome was important both for the sessions during which we had the opportunity to address the speakers of European parliaments and for today’s session concerning the erosion of the rules-based international order,” Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili told Georgian journalists in Rome.

Papuashvili said he stressed that this breakdown begins when trust in international institutions diminishes.

“In the presence of the speakers of parliament from Council of Europe member states, it was vital to address the fact that one of the institutions weakening this trust is the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which undermines the principle of national sovereignty by failing to recognise the credentials of the Georgian parliamentary delegation. We also discussed this matter during a bilateral meeting with the President of PACE, where we clearly explained our stance. As long as the sovereign will of the Georgian people continues to be infringed upon by the Parliamentary Assembly, they will not see our delegation at the assembly,” Papuashvili noted.

Furthermore, as the Speaker of Parliament noted, it is high time the assembly returned to respecting democracy and the rights of peoples, including the right of nations to choose their own government.

“The moment they return to the fundamental principles of international law and the rules-based international order, our delegation will be represented at the Parliamentary Assembly from that very instant. Over the past two days, I also had the opportunity to hold bilateral meetings with our colleagues, including the President of the Italian Parliament, with whom we enjoy long-standing and friendly relations. Each meeting was vital to underscore the importance of bilateral relations, given that Brussels is pursuing a confrontational approach that blocks not only Georgia’s European integration but also high-level engagements with EU member states.

We see that not everyone is following these calls, and we all need to safeguard our bilateral relations. The bureaucracy in Brussels comes and goes, but nations remain. It is essential to preserve these bilateral ties so that in the future, when the current Brussels bureaucracy changes, we will not be ashamed to look each other in the eye,” Shalva Papuashvili stated.