Georgian Parliament Speaker criticises European Commissioners for “patronising tone” towards Georgia

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Saturday criticised certain European Commissioners for what he described as a “patronising tone” toward the Georgian people, emphasising that the core principle of the international order was respect for national sovereignty.

In his remarks, Papuashvili underscored that the Georgian people, not foreign institutions, were the ultimate judges of their Government’s performance.

“Our main evaluator is the Georgian people - it is the Georgian people who evaluate the Georgian Government. The kind of evaluation plan that Brussels is offering reminds us of Soviet Moscow, which used to set us five-year plans - now they tell us about five points, or some other plans they set for us. The main principle on which the international order is based is respect for the sovereignty of other peoples”, he said.

The Speaker further noted that some European politicians, particularly from post-Soviet member states, were overstepping by claiming to speak on behalf of the Georgian people, which he described as an act of disrespect toward Georgia’s independence.

“The patronising tone that some European Commissioners dare to use when speaking to the Georgian people is unacceptable. Some post-Soviet politicians have the audacity to speak on behalf of the Georgian people. A person elected by Estonia or some other country addresses us, Georgians, in the name of Georgians. What could be more cynical and disrespectful to independence than that?” he noted.

Papuashvili also stated that Georgia would continue to express its own critical assessments of Brussels, asserting that the EU had strayed from its foundational values and was, in his words, “drifting backward toward the Soviet Union”.

“We have our own assessments regarding Brussels - we speak about them openly and will continue to do so. Since Brussels has chosen such a confrontational tone and assumed the role of curator and guardian of the Georgian people, they will hear from the Georgian people very well-reasoned assessments of their actions. Brussels has completely deviated from European values today and is drifting backward - toward the Soviet Union”, Papuashvili concluded.