MP Sharmanashvili: ‘Ivanishvili faces no threat, his homeland is Georgia’

Tengiz Sharmanashvili, First Deputy Chair of the Georgian Parliament’s Defence and Security Committee, on Thursday responded to a recent resolution adopted by the European Affairs Committee of the French National Assembly, which calls on the French government to support targeted sanctions against Georgia’s ruling party founder Bidzina Ivanishvili and his associates.

Speaking to reporters, Sharmanashvili dismissed suggestions that Ivanishvili, who is a French citizen, might be under threat, saying there is “no danger whatsoever”.

“Ivanishvili faces no threat. He has a homeland and that homeland is Georgia. He is doing everything for Georgia. He may hold French citizenship, but even if something theoretically threatened him, he would never betray Georgia’s interests”, he said.

The French committee’s resolution urges the government in Paris to back potential sanctions, citing concerns over democratic backsliding in Georgia.