Part of opposition seeking restrictive measures against Georgia - Parliament Speaker

Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili on Monday accused a part of the domestic opposition of seeking “restrictive measures” being applied to the country by the West.

In reference to allegations of Georgia being used for circumvention of international sanctions placed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, Papuashvili stressed the policy pursued by a part of the domestic opposition was a “hybrid war” against the country.

We see the campaign [that involves speculation on] whether a ship [with sanctioned cargo] has entered [Georgian ports] or not, whether a military plane has flown over [the country] or not - all this [later] turns out to be absolutely fake”, he said.

All this is an information war against the country. What we see is a hybrid war against Georgia, when the country is discredited in order to provoke some reaction from some countries or [international] organisations and thereby weaken the Georgian Government”, the head of the Georgian legislative body said.

Grigol Vashadze, a member of the Georgian Parliament, on Thursday criticised David Arakhamia, a Ukrainian lawmaker and the country's chief negotiator with Russia, for his “incomprehensible” allegations of Georgia being used for circumvention of international sanctions.

Vashadze condemned Arakhamia’s statements as being made “without any facts or evidence”, adding the claims were “not suitable for the alliance of the two countries”.

Vashadze also said he had asked Georgia's Western allies a number of times whether accusations of sanctions circumvention involving Georgia were valid, noting he received “a categorical no as their answer each time”.