Georgia’s ruling party Sec Gen dismisses EU sanction threats: we will be uncompromising regarding national interests

Kakha Kaladze, the mayor of Tbilisi and secretary general of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday commented on renewed discussions within the European Union regarding potential sanctions against Georgia. Speaking to the media, Kaladze emphasised that the ruling party prioritises national sovereignty over international pressure.

Kaladze’s comments followed a statement by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, who discussed the possibility of sanctions following a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.

When asked about the recurring threats of financial or personal restrictions from European officials, Kaladze questioned the effectiveness and frequency of such warnings.

“Statements about sanctions have been made many times, and I will repeat once again - when it comes to the country’s interests, we will be uncompromising. We will have a very principled position. We will defend Georgia’s interests, the country’s future, and the interests of the Georgian people. We are doing our job, implementing a policy where the interests of the people and the country are protected. How many times should they impose sanctions? Once, twice, three times. We understand all this, but here we are talking about the country’s interests”, he said.

“In general, European bureaucrats do not like arguments. They limit themselves only to superficial messages, threats, and blackmail. For a long time now, threats have been coming from them, even regarding the so-called transparency law. We are asking only one thing: why is this law a problem or why does it contradict European values, when various European countries themselves speak about the necessity of a similar law. When we adopted this law, you remember what kind of attacks there were, and the same continues today”, Kaladze concluded.