Georgian Parliament Speaker: US administration supports human rights, while Brussels lags behind, funds anti-democratic actors

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday said the new US administration had taken a clear stance in support of human rights and the rule of law, while Brussels remains disconnected from global realities and continues to back actors who undermine democracy.

In his remarks, Papuashvili emphasised what he called a growing “value gap” between the United States and the European Union.

“There is a value gap between the US and Brussels. We see that in the United States, after the administration changed, the new administration clearly stands on the side of human rights and the rule of law. Brussels is lagging behind in this entire process, disconnected from the state of the world”, the Speaker said.

The Speaker further added that NGOs benefiting from EU funding were involved in organising violent actions around Georgia’s October 4 elections, and criticised the EU Ambassador for failing to provide adequate explanations to the Georgian public regarding the bloc’s support for such organisations.

“Everyone condemns violence, but the European Commission’s spokesperson comes out and supports a violent actor. Everyone condemns anti-democratic actions, yet various Brussels bureaucrats fund NGOs that have stepped outside democratic frameworks. These NGOs, which today talk about disrupting the October 4 elections, are involved in organising violence on October 4 and are funded by the EU budget. The [EU] Ambassador does not even deem the Georgian people worthy of providing explanations regarding this”, he concluded.