MPs’ movement calls on US Ambassador to “deny or confirm" Ukrainian diplomat’s statements on arms exchange
The response from the movement said Kasyanov’s comments represented a “very specific and clear accusation” against the United States in relation to what they called “Georgia's involvement” in the conflict in Ukraine. Photo: People's Power/Facebook
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People's Power, a public movement established by former ruling Georgian Dream party MPs who exited the team in June, on Wednesday called on the United States’ Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan to deny or confirm Ukrainian diplomat Andriy Kasyanov’s claims on an arms exchange request between his country, the US and Georgia.
The statement followed an article by Kasyanov, the charge d'affaires of Ukraine to Georgia, which on Monday said Ukrainian authorities had agreed with Washington a swap that would see Georgia hand over the US-made Javelin anti-tank systems purchased for Georgian Defence Forces over the recent years to Ukraine, to aid its defence from the ongoing Russian invasion, and receive newer systems from the US in return. Kasyanov also said the Georgian side had rejected the deal.
The response from the movement said Kasyanov’s comments represented a “very specific and clear accusation” against the United States in relation to what they called “Georgia's involvement” in the conflict in Ukraine.
“For months, we have been asking the American Embassy and the Ambassador to clearly distance themselves from the interests of involving Georgia into the war, but unfortunately, this has not happened”, the statement said.
We ask the Ambassador to come out now and deny or confirm the statement of the representative of Ukraine, and thus provide information to both the Georgian and the international communities [around the matter]”, the MPs added.
The statement of the organisation also said in case Degnan refused to respond to the call, “the public will assume that silence is a sign of confirmation”.
The call comes following a series of controversies between the US Embassy and the MPs’ movement, with the latter accusing the diplomatic office of interfering in Georgia’s judiciary and criticising her comments on violations during the 2020 Parliamentary elections in the country, among other reactions.
Irakli Kadagishvili, the Chair of the Rules and Procedural Issues Committee of the Parliament of Georgia, on Tuesday said the charge d'affaires of Ukraine to Georgia, Andriy Kasyanov’s “shocking” statement on Tbilisi’s refusal to provide arms for Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia had been instructed by Ukrainian Government, as the diplomat would not make such statements “independently”.
The Georgian Defence Ministry on Tuesday rejected claims in domestic media that said a Buk surface-to-air missile system had been handed over by Ukraine to the country “free of charge” in 2008, following an article by Ukraine’s charge d’affaires who said his Government had asked their Georgian counterparts to hand the system back to aid Ukraine’s efforts in its ongoing conflict with Russia.
Gia Tsagareishvili, an MP of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday accused Andriy Kasyanov, the charge d'affaires of Ukraine to Georgia, of making “provocative statements” over Tbilisi’s refusal to provide arms for Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia.
Givi Mikanadze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday called a comment by Andriy Kasyanov, a representative of the Ukrainian Embassy to Georgia, on Ukraine’s request of a missile system delivery from Georgia “another attempt to drag Georgia into the war” in the country.
Givi Mikanadze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday criticised Ben Hodges, the former Commander of the United States Armed Forces in Europe, for an “insulting” statement on the position of the Georgian Government on Ukraine, and said the comments were “harmful” to the reputation of Georgia.
Nikoloz Samkharadze, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's Foreign Relations Committee, on Wednesday said the Georgian Government had stated “very clearly” and “from the beginning” its position on support for Ukraine “in everything” except transfer of weapons to the country amid its defence from the ongoing Russian invasion.
People's Power, a public movement established by former MPs of the ruling Georgian Dream party who exited the team last year, on Monday said the domestic bill on transparency of foreign influence had become a “target of unjustified criticism”, and called comparisons with laws in the United States and Russia “categorically unacceptable”.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili on Tuesday pledged to veto the controversial domestic bill on transparency of foreign influence, proposed by the People’s Power movement, if the draft law is approved by the country’s legislative body.