UNM’s Sanikidze welcomes German Embassy’s ‘clear statement’ against Georgian Dream

Levan Sanikidze, one of the leaders of Georgia’s opposition United National Movement, on Thursday welcomed the recent statement from the German Embassy in Tbilisi, saying it was so clear that the ruling Georgian Dream party “cannot respond to it.”

“The main function of the de facto Parliament and its de facto Speaker, Shalva Papuashvili, is to stalk ambassadors and NGOs on Facebook. It is good that our German partners have made such a clear statement that Georgian Dream cannot answer,” Sanikidze said.

He accused the ruling party of deliberately undermining Georgia’s ties with Western partners.

“Obviously, the Georgian Dream is doing everything it can to completely destroy relations with our Western allies. Since October 26, they have hijacked Georgia’s constitution and state institutions. Naturally, each of their actions harms our path to European integration and creates serious problems for every citizen. They are increasing the likelihood that Bidzina Ivanishvili will succeed in getting a million Georgians sanctioned and in jeopardizing visa-free travel, one of our country’s unique achievements,” Sanikidze claimed.

He also criticized Papuashvili personally, recalling his past work with the German development agency GIZ.

“Today, instead of fulfilling his duties as speaker, Papuashvili is engaged in cheap gossip and publicising other people’s posts, stalking diplomats and NGOs online. That has become his main function. In this context, I believe our German partners have issued a statement so unambiguous that Georgian Dream has so far been unable to provide a clear response,” Sanikidze said.