In an interview with the Lithuanian Public Broadcaster, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili said she was “not officially authorized” to visit Lithuania, but she acted according to the “mandate given by the Georgian people.”

President responded to a question about whether the Georgian government had approved her visit.

“Obviously, you probably know that no! The Georgian Government has not approved this visit for reasons beyond my understanding. It seems to me that now, we should all – the Parliament, the government, the President -work together and do everything possible, as per our Constitution, to convince our partners that we need to get the candidate country’s status by the end of this year. I try to do all this. I am very sorry, but I am not officially authorized to go on this visit. I am acting out of conviction. I must do so. I believe that the people of Georgia gave me a mandate, and I act accordingly,” she said.

The Georgian President was asked about the impeachment procedure launched against her.

“I can not explain. Only those who started it can. Impeachment proceedings are often initiated for very grievous crimes, like treason. In this case, I don’t know of any other country that would start impeachment proceedings because the President is doing his job and trying to get the country on the path it should be on, which is the European integration path. Georgia has consistently worked on this issue since independence. This is our primary goal and task. It is the hope of the people of Georgia. More than 80% of the population of our country supports it. All the opinion polls that have been conducted in the last 30 years show that,” she said.