Kobakhidze’s Brussels visit aims to create impression of continued EU engagement, Gigiadze

Gigi Gigiadze, senior researcher at the Economic Policy Research Center, has criticised Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s planned participation in the EU Enlargement Summit in Brussels, saying the visit is intended to create an impression among Georgian voters that European institutions remain willing to engage with the ruling authorities.

Gigiadze said Kobakhidze would face difficult questions about developments in Georgia, including the treatment of opposition parties, arrests, freedom of expression and the state of democracy and human rights.

“He will have to answer very difficult questions during this meeting. He will be asked directly about how an EU candidate country can be engaged in banning opposition parties, detaining innocent people and restricting freedom of speech. How can a country be in such a grave situation in terms of human rights and democracy? I am not even mentioning the dismantling of the rule of law. He will have to provide very open answers to all these questions,” Gigiadze said.

He argued that the purpose of the visit was to convince the public and Georgian Dream voters that Brussels was still inviting the government to meetings and that relations with Europe could be restored.

“They are going to such meetings only to create the impression among the public and their voters that Brussels is still inviting them, or that Europe might somehow restore relations. That is, of course, false,” Gigiadze said.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze is scheduled to attend the EU Enlargement Summit in Brussels, organised by Euronews.