“The Chancellor [Olaf Scholz] said that the law did not align with EU values. I responded that the European Commission had approved it. Scholz stated that he dislikes both the European Commission’s and France’s laws,” Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on Wednesday.

“Understandably, they don’t like it, but the EU member state approved it and remains an EU member state. No one criticized France for that.

As for the content, I explained to Scholz that this law [on Transparency of Foreign Influence] only envisages annual declarations. We had an exchange of views in this regard, followed by a general meeting with the delegation, where I reiterated my arguments. There was no discussion at all. There was a pre-prepared text, which is also common practice, you can’t blame anyone for that, and naturally, that text was read at this briefing.

It is incorrect to make one-sided statements, especially if they do not contain reasoning. Therefore, we propose that everyone sit together. Ambassadors are represented here. If there are any reasons against this law, we are willing to address them openly. Hopefully, the ambassadors will accept this offer,” added Kobakhidze.