Georgian Parliament Speaker criticises EU over visa decision, calls it “tool of division”

Georgian Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday criticised the European Union and Switzerland following Switzerland’s decision to suspend diplomatic passports for Georgian officials, describing the move as a symptom of a broader civilisational crisis within EU bureaucracies.

In his remarks, Papuashvili noted that Switzerland’s decision was largely technical.

“Switzerland is harmonised with the Schengen area. Accordingly, following the European Commission’s decision, Switzerland also had to adopt this decision. The European Commission’s decision itself is an unjust one that violates international law, for which the legislation was specifically amended. The rules were tailored to Georgia - they were changed specifically for us - which apparently shows how important we are, and that may even be a positive thing - in order to exert political pressure on Georgia. This decision is absurd”, the speaker said.

Papuashvili further noted that in 2010, the European Union granted visa-free travel to the political elite of what he described as a “torturous regime”, while citizens had to wait seven years before receiving visa-free travel.

He added that this demonstrated that there were no moral motivations behind such decisions.

“As for the decision itself, it is their choice, and we have no problem with that. Visits are ongoing, and I will also be visiting EU member states in the near future. So there is no issue”, the speaker said.

“An official passport is used for official purposes. Using it for private travel is already prohibited. If someone travels privately, they must use a personal passport. When officials travel abroad for official purposes, they do so by invitation. We do not go on our own initiative - if we are invited, it implies that visas are also issued, and travel proceeds without problems”, he continued.

Papuashvili further highlighted that his first visit as the Parliament speaker was to the United Kingdom, “where everyone requires a visa”.

“I went, stood in line, and obtained a visa as the Parliament speaker. I don’t think that adds or subtracts anything for anyone. The same was the case in the UK and Ireland”, he said.

“The issue is that the European Union sees visas as a tool of punishment. This reveals the immorality of Brussels - that at this level they consider freedom of movement as an instrument of punishment. Turning visas into a tool not of connection but of division shows the civilisational crisis the EU is facing under its bureaucrats”, Papuashvili concluded.