Shalva Papuashvili meets PACE President Petra Bayr in Rome

Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili has met with the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Petra Bayr.

Shalva Papuashvili stated that international organisations have often been instrumentalised to achieve political objectives in recent years, citing PACE’s stance towards the Georgian parliamentary delegation as a prime example.

The sides discussed relations between the Parliament of Georgia and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. It was noted that the Georgian Parliament does not have a delegation at the Assembly.

Shalva Papuashvili drew attention to the PACE resolution adopted in January 2025, which he argued grossly violates Georgia’s sovereignty. The Parliament Speaker stated that holding new parliamentary elections had been set as a precondition for extending the credentials of the Georgian delegation, thereby breaching the Parliamentary Assembly’s own principles. Papuashvili identified the unconditional recognition of the Georgian delegation’s credentials as the only path towards restoring cooperation.

Shalva Papuashvili declared that Georgia remains committed to the core principles and values of the Council of Europe.

The meeting took place in Rome, Italy, on the sidelines of the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament of Council of Europe member states.

The parliamentary delegation includes Nikoloz Samkharadze, Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee; Levan Makhashvili, Chair of the European Integration Committee; and Eka Sepashvili, Deputy Chair of the ‘People’s Power’ parliamentary political group.