Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Wednesday said Georgia would continue to back Ukraine “to the best of its ability, as we have done so far.”

“We actively assisted Ukraine from a humanitarian, political, and diplomatic point of view; this is our obligation and shows respect for our partner. No careless behavior towards us can change that,” continued Darchiashvili.

The FM asserted that “everything is clear regarding former President Mikheil Saakashvili and Ukraine’s decision is baseless.”

“Friends don’t deserve such treatment. We will undoubtedly have an opportunity in the future to debate these matters in bilateral formats, but for now, we typically stick with our stated stance. We won’t respond to this,” he continued.

On July 3, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the Georgian authorities “to hand over Ukrainian citizen Mykhailo Saakashvili to Ukraine for the necessary treatment and care.” He also urged partners to address this situation and “not ignore it and save this man.”

Georgian MFA echoed the statement, deeming it “a severe form of diplomatic escalation, and it is terrible that Kyiv is taking this move against a friendly state and people, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.”