It is better for Ukrainian officials to look for their  people, who are going through a very complicated period now, Georgian Culture Minister Tea Tsulukiani said in response to recent comments of Aleksey Arestovich, the adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine, who suggested that his country would have to “free and save” Georgians.  

“I do not know whether Arestovich deserves a diplomatic-cultural answer, or a slightly different answer, it is better for those high-ranking officials of Ukraine, who are engaged in imparting wisdom to the Georgian nation, to look for their own people”, Tsulukiani said.

She stated that such wording from Ukrainian  high-ranking officials was “surprising”, but said “although this is not the first time”. 

“It is better for them [for Ukrainian officials] to take care of their own people, who are in a very complicated situation now. From our side, we are doing our best to support Ukraianians”, she said.

“Of course, we have a certain obligation to be patient because there is a war in Ukraine, but we also have an obligation to our people. The first obligation, which we clearly fulfill and will fulfill in the future, is that, contrary to the wishes of some Ukrainian friends, we will never allow hostilities in the country”, said the minister. 

In a recent discussion held on one of the YouTube channels, Arestovich slammed the Georgian Dream authorities, stating that they were “destroying everything that Saakashvili [former president Mikheil] had created”.