Georgian PM slams foreign-funded campaigns against Church, pledges full support

Georgian prime minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said that his government would not permit anyone to restart a broad campaign against the Orthodox Church, recalling that for years there has been a large-scale, foreign-funded campaign targeting the Church.

In his remarks, Kobakhidze claimed that various political parties, non-governmental organisations, and media outlets were involved in large-scale campaigns targeting the Church.

“You remember that there was a very broad campaign carried out against the Orthodox Church over the years. This too was a foreign-funded campaign. Specific political parties, certain NGOs, and particular media outlets were involved in it, and it took us considerable effort to stop this campaign”, he said.

“Eventually, they were forced to halt it at a certain stage due to exposure. However, now you can see that they believe they have an opportunity to restart this campaign”, Kobakhidze continued.

The prime minister further emphasised that his government would take a firm stance to prevent any renewed campaigns and would actively defend the Church’s interests.

“We will not allow anyone to once again widely launch a campaign against the Orthodox Church. We will stand firmly in defence of our Church’s interests”, Kobakhidze concluded.