Parliament Speaker: United National Movement opposition policy is to harm country
Papuashvili alleged the UNM agenda was to create a scenario that would enable the opposition party to regain power by “bypassing democracy”. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
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Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday said the policy of the opposition United National Movement party was to “somehow harm” the country, highlighting the party’s refusal to participate in fulfilling the 12-point conditions established by the European Union for granting Georgia the membership candidate status later this year.
It seems that their policy is to somehow harm Georgia. They do this by not participating in the process of fulfilling the 12-point conditions. Their agenda is only to harm Georgia in some way, with sanctions or something like that. They are the authors of disinformation about their own country. [...] They confirm that they are not interested in Europe”, the head of the legislative body said.
Papuashvili alleged the UNM agenda was to create a scenario that would enable the opposition party to regain power by “bypassing democracy”.
The radical agenda will have no place in this country. They will have to be involved in the process [of fulfilling the EU conditions]. In the meantime, whatever damage they can do, they will do to their own country”, Papuashvili concluded in his comments.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Sunday said a part of the domestic opposition had “boycotted Europe” and the implementation of the EU conditions.
Mdinaradze said it was “in the interests” of the Government to ensure it was granted the EU candidate status, as it would “strengthen the positions” of the ruling team, while claiming the outcome was not in the interests of the UNM.
Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said a part of the domestic opposition was “sabotaging” the process of Georgia fulfilling the 12-point conditions established by the European Union for granting it the membership candidate status.
Nacho Sánchez Amor, a Member of the European Parliament, on Wednesday said he supported granting Georgia the European Union membership candidate status immediately, claiming putting Georgia in a “different situation” from Moldova and Ukraine had been a “wrong decision” that had increased polarisation in the country’s domestic political environment.
German Ambassador to Georgia Hubert Knirsch on Wednesday said the 12-point conditions established by the European Union for granting Georgia the membership candidate status later this year were a “big challenge” for the Georgian political spectrum and noted the domestic political parties must find the “strength to cooperate” with each other.
Tamar Taliashvili, an MP for the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday said the domestic “radical opposition” had “no interest” in being a constructive player in taking part in the fulfilment of the 12-point conditions established by the European Union for granting the country the membership candidate status later this year.
Nacho Sánchez Amor, a Member of the European Parliament, on Tuesday said the decision of the European Council to grant Georgia a status different from what Moldova and Ukraine had received was a “political mistake” and “obviously” created more polarisation in the country’s domestic political environment.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Sunday said a part of the domestic opposition had “boycotted Europe” and the implementation of the conditions outlined by the European Union for granting the country the membership candidate status later this year.
Georgia must understand that the European perspective granted to the country by the European Parliament and the European Council is “extremely important”, President Salome Zourabichvili said in a joint press conference with Members of the European Parliament on Wednesday.
The United National Movement party, the largest opposition group in the state legislature, may join the parliamentary format proposed by the ruling Georgian Dream party for addressing the 12-point conditions set by the European Commission in June for Georgia to obtain European Union membership candidate status by the end of this year, UNM MP Levan Bezhashvili said on Thursday.