Georgian Parliament Speaker criticises opposition’s 2022 war rhetoric

Georgian Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday said that amid ongoing global crises, the country should recall that it narrowly avoided being drawn into a war in 2022.

“In times of global crises, we must remember that in 2022 Georgia avoided a war that would have been inevitable had those political forces - which had already predetermined Georgia’s role in a confrontation with Russia - come to power”, the speaker stressed.

Papuashvili recalled the statements by Eka Gigauri, the executive director of Transparency International Georgia, and opposition leader Zurab Japaridze, who in 2022 after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, voiced escalatory rhetoric that could push the country toward dangerous confrontation with Russia.

“Russia is losing the war in Ukraine. It lacks the resources there, so it cannot start military actions in every direction. We must do everything to use this window of opportunity and show the West that we stand by its side”, Gigauri said.

“You can take actions, even if it means tying down some of Russia’s forces here - if ten thousand troops are held in place here, that would still be some help for Ukraine”, Japaridze noted.