UNM opposition welcomes appointment of Ukrainian ambassador to Georgia

An opposition leader from the United National Movement, Irakli Pavlenishvili, has welcomed the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to Georgia, saying the Ukrainian state should have a diplomatic representative in the country.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, Pavlenishvili said that the absence of an ambassador for a period had been understandable, given tensions that emerged several years ago and have continued since.

He said Ukraine had placed significant trust in Georgia, but alleged that Georgia had at one point been turned into an instrument of hybrid warfare, with its government representatives promoting what he described as Russian narratives on international platforms. Pavlenishvili said this had made the deterioration in relations and the lack of an ambassador a natural outcome at the time.

However, he said that regardless of whether Georgia’s current government was considered legitimate or not, Ukraine and the Ukrainian state as a whole should have a representative in Georgia.

He said he fully welcomed the appointment of a Ukrainian ambassador to the country.

Ukraine appointed Mykhailo Brodovych as its ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Georgia on 26 January.