Ruling party Sec-Gen slams EU for ‘blackmail’ amid visa liberalisation row

Kakha Kaladze, the Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party and Mayor of Tbilisi, on Tuesday accused European officials of using the country’s path toward EU integration as a “tool of political pressure” and “blackmail,” warning that Georgia’s sovereignty and national interests “will not be compromised.”

Speaking amid speculation that the European Union may suspend Georgia’s visa-free travel privileges, Kaladze claimed that the threat of withdrawal was part of a “long-standing campaign of political coercion” allegedly aimed at influencing Georgia’s domestic and foreign policy.

“This is not new,” Kaladze told reporters. “Blackmail has been going on for a long time and continues. First, it was about whether we would receive EU candidate status. Then it was about whether negotiations would begin. Now it’s about visa liberalisation.”

Kaladze accused Brussels of “fuelling internal division” and “emboldening radical elements” within Georgia. “The European integration process is being used to stir domestic tension, awaken radical groups, and pit citizens against one another,” he claimed.

Kaladze further pledged that Georgia would not allow itself to be used “in a bad context, as a pawn,” insisting that the country was building an “independent and sovereign” future.

“We are not bowing down to anyone,” he added. “We are defending our country and our values – freedom of speech, the right to property, and business integrity.”

Kaladze also claimed that Western actors had previously tried to trigger upheaval in Georgia using political milestones such as the EU’s 2022 decision not to grant candidate status. “They tried to organize a revolution, a coup d’état,” he said. “They failed.”

The mayor further alleged that foreign powers “attempted to drag Georgia into regional conflicts” – a veiled reference to the war in Ukraine. “We are the only government since independence under which the country has not had a war,” he said. “We’ve resisted major external pressure to open a second front.”