Ex-presidents Margvelashvili, Saakashvili discuss security issues in Georgia
Margvelashvili noted that President Zurabishvili’s initiative should be welcomed and supported, adding that Georgia is ‘facing a very serious challenge.’ Photo: 1tv.ge.
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Former Georgian president Giorgi Margvelashvili has visited ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili at Gori Military Hospital, where the latter is undergoing treatment following a hunger strike, and discussed security issues and the ‘difficult geopolitical situation’ in the country.
The meeting was preceded by Georgian President Zurabishvili’s initiative which aims to reconcile various political parties in Georgia to end polarisation and ‘achieve national reconciliation through the involvement of all society.’
Margvelashvili, who served as the country’s fourth president from 2013 to 2018, stated that Saakashvili is a prisoner of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
No matter how much we disagree with each other, this is a man whose imprisonment is in Putin's interests,” Margvelashvili said.
He noted that Zurabishvili’s initiative should be welcomed and supported, adding that Georgia is ‘facing a very serious challenge.’
Margvelashvili also said that in the process of negotiations, politically motivated prosecutions against the Georgian politicians should be suspended.
Saakashvili, who currently holds Ukrainian citizenship, is serving a sentence for abuse of power after his clandestine return from eight years in political exile and faces additional charges, including illegal seizure of property, embezzlement, illegal rally dispersal and illegal border crossing.
Zurabishvili has already held several meetings with opposition leaders from various political parties, Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria and Patriarch Ilia II in which she discussed ways to end polarisation in the country and reach a ‘national agreement.’
President Zurabishvili stated that she will not pardon Saakashvili, emphasising that her position regarding the issue is ‘unchanged and unwavering.’
US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan has stated earlier today that efforts made by Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, who is holding meetings with political leaders of both the ruling party and opposition in order to achieve national reconciliation, ‘are extremely important.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has met with MPs Khatia Dekanoidze from the United National Movement (UNM) and Salome Samadashvili from Lelo for Georgia faction earlier today, where the ongoing issues in the country were discussed, including ‘political justice.'
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili says that her recent initiative, which aims to reconcile various political parties in Georgia to end polarization, is complicated to carry out but the process is ‘very transparent.’
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili met with Patriarch Ilia II earlier today to familiarize him with her views on how to decrease political polarization in the country and allow Georgia to 'move forward.’
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has addressed the virtual Summit for Democracy organised by US President Joe Biden and stated that significant threats undermine the progress achieved internally including polarisation, fake news and hate speech which ‘not only fuel internal divisions, but also undermine democratic processes’ in the country.