“German Embassy gave a platform to Irakli Khvadagiani. It is difficult to imagine a more cynical act than inviting a propagandist of Saakashvili and a follower of his extremist ideas to a discussion on understanding the past,” Georgian Parliament Speaker, Shalva Papuashvili, wrote on social media.

He accused the embassy of ignoring the alleged crimes committed during Saakashvili’s rule, calling the move ‘a cynical approach’ amid ongoing parliamentary investigations into past human rights abuses.

“‘He who knows his past has a future’ — with these words by Humboldt, the German Embassy opened an event featuring Irakli Khvadagiani, number 8 on the parliamentary list of Mikheil Saakashvili’s United National Movement. Inviting a propagandist for Saakashvili and a proponent of his extremist views to a discussion on historical understanding is deeply cynical. This comes amid ongoing parliamentary hearings into human tragedies committed during Saakashvili’s rule — crimes the foreign embassy appears to ignore. As Humboldt also warned, ‘The most dangerous worldview is that of those who have never looked at the world,'” he stated.

The German Embassy had earlier announced that it had invited historian Peter Keup to Georgia for a series of lectures in Gori and Kutaisi. According to the embassy, Georgian historian Irakli Khvadagiani also participated in the events.