“They failed to build the port and then turned against their own country. They demanded USD 1.5 billion from the citizens, yet ended up returning USD 7.1 million to the state budget, excluding the millions wasted on low-qualified lawyers,” writes the Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, in response to the Washington arbitration ruling on the Anaklia port project.

According to Papuashvili, “this marks the end for all swindlers.”

“Before this, there was another case of fraud that concluded with a court verdict, involving the fraudulent withdrawal of 17 million dollars from a bank. For their role in this scheme, Khazaradze and Japaridze were each sentenced to seven years in prison, and the bank admitted its involvement and paid a 3 million dollar fine.

Three years ago, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) accepted these individuals as members. This decision also reflects on the moral standards of the alliance. Now, it is crucial to see whether, following their exposure by one national and two international courts, they will remain members, or whether the public suspicion that Khazaradze and Japaridze simply paid for their ALDE membership will be confirmed. We should be aware that any foreign politicians or diplomats who now choose to shake hands with them are effectively endorsing a fraud perpetrated against the Georgian people,” Papuashvili wrote on social media.

The Ministry of Justice asserts that Khazaradze and Japaridze lost the arbitration. It states that in the dispute, Bob Meijer, their Dutch partner, demanded USD 64 million. However, the tribunal rejected his claims and instead ordered him to pay USD 6.5 million to the government of Georgia.