Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday slammed the European Union Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski for his “inappropriate” comment on ongoing impeachment procedures against President Salome Zourabichvili. 

In his remarks on Friday, the diplomat said the process proposed by the ruling Georgian Dream party for Zourabichvili unauthorized EU trip last month would not promote the country’s interests ahead of the bloc’s decision on Tbilisi’s candidacy. 

"I think the statement is inappropriate, since it concerns the Constitution of Georgia and the rule of law, and when we talk about the rule of law, here, of course, first of all, the supreme law or the constitution is meant”, Papuashvili said, as the GD claims the President had violated the country’s Constitution when she visited the EU after being rejected for the trip by the Government. 

Papuashvili also urged foreign actors to “respect the constitutional arrangements of the host country”. 

“This process, we see, is going to the court in an absolutely civilized, European manner. This is Europe! This is how we understand Europe! If Europe is something else, then tell us that Europe implies that we should tolerate the violation of the Constitution, we should not respect the rule of law," he added. 

The diplomat told the media he was unable to widely comment on the topic until the Constitutional Court delivered its conclusion, but noted “If you ask me whether this helps depolarization, clearly - no”. 

“Unfortunately, this weakens Georgia's state institutions, and this is happening just as the first enlargement report is due to be published. We will see how it ends. But it is clear that when it becomes the number one priority, this process is not conducive to depolarization and it is untimely, which was clearly expressed by High Representative Josep Borrell when he was in Tbilisi a few weeks ago," the Ambassador said. 

The Court will announce its conclusion on the case this month, and if the GD’s allegations are approved, the President’s impeachment will be put on vote in the Parliament.