Georgian opposition criticises President Kavelashvili’s planned UN visit as ‘Kremlin narrative’

Irakli Pavlenishvili, deputy secretary general of the United National Movement (UNM), on Monday dismissed President Mikheil Kavelashvili’s upcoming visit to the United Nations as an “exercise in propaganda.”

The opposition figure claimed “Bidzina Ivanishvili’s team” - referring to the ruling Georgian Dream founder and honorary chair- was using such international platforms “only for propaganda purposes.”

Speaking to reporters, Pavlenishvili argued that Georgian Dream representatives had previously employed international forums either to “spread Russian propaganda narratives” or to deliver “empty, meaningless statements.”

“I don’t know what messages Kavelashvili’s speech will contain, but most likely it will be a mix of Kremlin imperialist narratives and clichéd, meaningless phrases,” Pavlenishvili said. He added that, following what he described as Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s “previous failure,” the responsibility for the UN appearance had instead fallen to Kavelashvili.