“Twenty-five years after Zurab Zhvania’s historic words at the Council of Europe, Georgia now faces the threat of expulsion from the organisation. The only way forward is a change of government,” Levan Sanikidze, one of the leaders of the United National Movement opposition party, stated.

Sanikidze described the recent statement by 51 members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) concerning Georgia as deeply concerning.

“This is yet another alarming development, and the primary targets of this statement are, of course, the Georgian Dream and Bidzina Ivanishvili himself, who are deliberately eroding the progress we have made over the years in our European integration journey. Our accession to the Council of Europe was a momentous milestone. I remember the legendary words spoken by the then Speaker of the Georgian Parliament during Georgia’s admission: Zurab Zhvania’s declaration that ‘I am Georgian, therefore European.’

It marked a huge stride towards Georgia’s European future. Yet, twenty-five years on, we find ourselves in a situation where they are talking about suspension or even expulsion from the Council of Europe. This is a catastrophic development, and the only way to correct it is through a change of government. Ivanishvili’s systemic actions have brought us to this point, and I believe there is no benefit in making demands on their government. In fact, it will only make things worse,” Sanikidze stated.