Ruling party sec gen says some MEPs friends of “particular political party”, not Georgia
In his remarks over the report, Kaladze noted those involved with the document “do not want the country to be headed by a government that cares about its own citizens, the development of the country and maintenance of peace”. Photo: Tbilisi City Hall
Tweet 
Share
Kakha Kaladze, the mayor of Tbilisi and the secretary general of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Thursday said “certain members” of the European Parliament were “friends not of Georgia but of a particular political party”.
The comment comes after the European Parliament's committee on foreign relations on Tuesday adopted the final version of rapporteur Sven Mikser’s report on Georgia with compromise amendments, which points to “excessive influence” of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of GD and the former prime minister, on developments in the country.
It also calls on Georgian authorities to stop “politically motivated criminal cases”, reconsider current cases brought against opposition media, their owners or family members, and allow the transfer of imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili abroad for treatment “on humanitarian grounds”.
In his remarks over the report, Kaladze noted those involved with the document “do not want the country to be headed by a government that cares about its own citizens, the development of the country and maintenance of peace”.
This resolution has no value. Obviously, certain groups of people who speak as if they are friends of our country are actually friends of a particular political party”, the Georgian official said.
Members of the ruling Georgian Dream party on Wednesday said they were “disappointed” with what they called a “number of wrong interpretations” in the newly approved annual report on the fulfilment of the 2014-signed Association Agreement between Georgia and the European Union.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday said the resolution on violations of media freedom and the safety of journalists in Georgia, adopted by the European Parliament on Thursday, had been initiated by the European People's Party, and called the United National Movement domestic opposition party the EPP’s “main ally”.
Irakli Chikovani, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Friday said he was “convinced” the resolution on violations of media freedom and the safety of journalists in Georgia, adopted by the European Parliament on Thursday, would not “cast a shadow” over the “progress made” by the country.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday criticised the European Parliament resolution on violations of media freedom and the safety of journalists in Georgia by saying the document was “not worth a dime”.
Georgian parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Sunday said it was “hard to see” some European politicians “try to pursue their own political interests in Georgia using Russian propaganda methods”.
Georgian parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday said friends of the imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili and former United National Movement defence minister and now private TV channel owner David Kezerashvili “by definition” could not be friends of the country.
Tbilisi mayor Kakha Kaladze on Wednesday said there was “no political message” in city authorities’ selection of the “City of Peace” message to mark the New Year's Eve in the capital.