Georgian Parliament official: Georgia will not leave OSCE PA despite resolution distorting facts

Nikoloz Samkharadze, the Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Parliament of Georgia, on Sunday said the Georgian delegation had no intention of leaving the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, despite what he described as a resolution that distorted facts about Georgia.

In his interview with Imedi TV, Samkharadze noted that the delegation would continue participating in the Assembly to respond to accusations against the country, arguing the resolution echoed the narrative of the U.S. Congressman Joe Wilson.

“Joe Wilson's resolution distorts the facts, and we cannot accept the distortion of facts. We certainly do not intend to leave the Assembly. We will not make anyone happy by ensuring that when such accusations are made against Georgia, there is no one in the chamber to respond”, Samkharadze said.

He added that the President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly had initially believed the Georgian delegation was withdrawing from the Assembly when it left the chamber during the vote on the declaration.

“As we were leaving the chamber, the President of the Assembly personally approached me and said it was not a good idea because, in his view, leaving the Assembly would be similar to leaving Parliament in our own country. He thought we were withdrawing from the Assembly, and several people followed us outside. I reassured them that we were not leaving. We have no intention of doing so, because we will not leave accusations against Georgia unanswered. It can be said that the Hague Declaration changed nothing, except for making a futile attempt to rewrite the OSCE/ODIHR’s 2024 election report”, he concluded.