Ruling party leader Kirtskhalia: ALDE’s attitude toward Georgia is clear once again

The leader of Georgia’s parliamentary majority, Irakli Kirtskhalia, on Monday criticised the opposition party Lelo and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) during a briefing at the ruling party headquarters, addressing their reaction to actions carried out by detained opposition leader Aleko Elisashvili.

Kirtskhalia said Lelo’s position mirrors that of ALDE toward Georgia, as he claimed members of the party lack an understanding of the notion of homeland.

“Lelo’s attitude is the same as that of this political group toward the country and their own homeland, although I am convinced none of them in Lelo even understands what the concept of homeland means,” he said.

Speaking about ALDE, Kirtskhalia argued that the group’s “patrons”, whether ALDE itself or unelected bureaucrats in Brussels, had shown a clear stance toward Georgia, especially since 2022.

“We have seen their attitude well. They were expressing it even before, but after 2022 it became very visible not only to our public, but beyond our country too. They not only condemn these actions, they encourage them,” he stated.

Kirtskhalia accused ALDE-affiliated actors of endorsing violence carried out during protests in Tbilisi, including the burning of police officers and the throwing of Molotov cocktails.

“When you speak on behalf of the EU, when on paper you call yourself a political party and you encourage setting police officers on fire and throwing Molotov cocktails… When you call yourself a representative of a diplomatic mission, bound by the Vienna Convention in the host country, yet you print banners praising Lazare Grigoriadis [arrested in connection with alleged offenses during the March protests against foreign agents bill] as a hero - this is a grave insult to our country,” he said.

Kirtskhalia added that after Grigoriadis, “the appearance of another ‘grown-up Lazare’, who was preparing to commit outright terrorism and the encouragement of such actions, is neither surprising nor new”.

“This once again highlights the worldview of this political group and the intentions of their patrons toward our country,” Kirtskhalia said.