Georgian PM: US President advocates closer China ties while his party members criticise Georgia’s cooperation with Beijing

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday said that “double standards” were a common practice among those who criticise Georgia for its foreign policy decisions, particularly regarding its engagement with China.

In his remarks, Kobakhidze pointed out that even the President of the United States speaks about the importance of deepening relations with China and has engaged directly with Chinese leadership, while members of the same political circles criticise Georgia for strengthening ties with Beijing.

“The US President not only actively speaks about the importance of deepening relations with China, but also had a personal visit to Beijing and met with the President of China, Mr. Xi Jinping. He spoke about the importance for the United States of deepening relations with China. At the same time, members of his party come out and criticise Georgia for deepening relations with the People’s Republic of China. This is a simple double standard and does not require a particularly deep analysis”, the PM said.

He also extended the same argument to the European Union, stating that EU representatives frequently emphasise the importance of maintaining and expanding relations with China while simultaneously criticising Georgia for doing the same.

“EU representatives also very often speak about the importance of deepening relations with China, and at the same time they periodically criticize us for deepening relations with the People’s Republic of China”, he concluded.