Kirtskhalia on opposition: They want Georgia to remain vulnerable because a vulnerable country is much easier to control

Irakli Kirtskhalia, chairman of the Georgian Dream parliamentary faction, has accused opposition figures of seeking to keep Georgia vulnerable, arguing that a weakened country is easier to control.

His remarks came in response to a journalist’s question about comments made by opposition politician Nika Gvaramia concerning Abkhazia.

“Gvaramia, Saakashvili, Baramidze and their associates this entire network of agents are called agents precisely because of statements like these. It is for this reason that Georgian society has quite rightly described them as an ‘alliance of people without a homeland.’ They are Georgian only by their documents and passports, but they have no homeland, because when you understand what a homeland means, when you know its pain and genuinely feel it, you do not make statements like these,” Kirtskhalia said.

According to Kirtskhalia, opposition leaders represent what he described as a “network of agents” and react negatively whenever steps are taken toward peace or improved relations.

“We should also remember that these are not really their own statements. Unfortunately, these are statements they have been instructed to make. We should therefore not be surprised that whenever we speak about peace, or whenever even a small step is taken toward easing tensions whether in economic relations or humanitarian assistance they immediately react,” he said.

Kirtskhalia also referred to the 2008 Russia-Georgia war and the war in Ukraine, accusing his political opponents of opposing the Georgian government’s peace-oriented policy.

“Where were these people in 2008? We saw what they did and how they acted they committed outright betrayal of the country. Then, after the developments in Ukraine and the bloody war that began in 2022, we saw them, together with their patrons, openly expressing outrage on Rustaveli Avenue and elsewhere over the fact that Georgia remained at peace. Their message was essentially: how can Georgia pursue a policy of peace when there is bloodshed, fire and war in Ukraine? This is their true face,” Kirtskhalia said.

“They are the party of war. They are a force of destruction, and they want our country to remain vulnerable at all times, because a vulnerable country is much easier to control,” he added.