Lithuanian Ambassador meets opposition parties at UNM office
Before entering the office the ambassador said that ‘we are working with all political parties to achieve success towards Euro-Atlantic integration’. Photo: IPN.
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Lithuanian Ambassador to Georgia Andrius Kalindra has met with officials from opposition parties at the office of the United National Movement (UNM) office earlier today.
Before entering the office he said that ‘we are working with all political parties to achieve success towards Euro-Atlantic integration’.
I am here to show solidarity with the current events and we are clearly concerned about the future that disproportionate measures may lead to", he said.
One of the leaders from the UNM Salome Samadashvili says that Kalindra is going to stay at the office until the political crisis is defused.
Melia made a statement on behalf of the opposition parties, and called on the authorities to sit down at the negotiating table and demanded early parliamentary elections.
Melia is charged with incitement to violence during the June protests in Tbilisi back in 2019 which were sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament.
He was released on 30,000 GEL bail on June 27, 2020. However, Melia violated the conditions of his bail by publicly removing his surveillance bracelet and 40,000 GEL was added to his bail in November 2020.
The UNM chair has refused to pay the 40,000 GEL bail (within 50 days of sentencing) and on February 5, 2021 the Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office warned him of the possibility of his bail conditions being reversed to detention.
Yesterday Tbilisi City Court ruled that Melia be remanded into custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the country’s Prosecutor’s Office.
This morning Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia announced his resignation, saying that the step is connected with the upcoming arrest of Melia.
US Senator Jim Risch, Former US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly and former MEP Rebecca Harms have responded to yesterday's decision of Tbilisi City Court which ruled to detain United National Movement chair Nika Melia.
Opposition MP and the head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia, who was named the reason for PM Giorgi Gakharia recent resignation, has stated that the opposition ‘welcomes’ the PM’s decision, but it is not sufficient.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has announced his resignation earlier today, saying that the step is connected with the upcoming arrest of the opposition MP, the head of the United National Movement opposition party Nika Melia. Gakharia has stated that Melia violated the law and has been engaged in sparking tension in the country.
Tbilisi City Court has ruled that United National Movement chair Nika Melia be remanded into custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the country’s Prosecutor’s Office. Meanwhile, the United States Embassy to Georgia calls on the authorities and the opposition 'to exercise maximum restraint in the wake of tonight’s ruling'.
The ruling Georgian Dream party MP Nikoloz Samkharadze stated earlier today that ‘as far as I know PM Giorgi Gakharia not only resigned but also left the Georgian Dream.’
The Georgian Dream ruling party has nominated Defense Minister Irakli Garibashvili, 39, for the premiership earlier today, following the resignation of Giorgi Gakharia. This is the second time the Georgian Dream has nominated Garibashvili for the premiership. Initially he served as PM between November 2013 and December 2015. He was the second PM under the Georgian Dream leadership, replacing the founder of the party Bidzina Ivanishvili in the role.
The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released a statement today, saying the ministry is concerned by the political situation in Georgia and reduced chance of dialogue, encouraging the Georgian authorities and opposition to refrain from actions jeopardising the country's future prospects.
Responding to the resignation of Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, the Lelo for Georgia opposition party said ‘this is the right step, which creates an opportunity to defuse the existing political crisis’. Party leader Badri Japaridze has called on the ruling Georgian Dream party to immediately start negotiations involving international partners in order to reach a political agreement between the opposition and the ruling party.
The Chair of Lithuanian Committee on Foreign Affairs Žygimantas Pavilionis held meetings with the ruling Georgian Dream party and opposition United National Movement amid the current political crisis in the country earlier today.