12:20 14.03.2022

Georgian president asks Zelensky to return Ukrainian ambassador to Tbilisi

2 min read

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, in her annual report on the situation in the country in the parliament on Monday, asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to return the Ukrainian ambassador to Tbilisi.

"In my annual report in the parliament last year, I asked the Georgian government to return our ambassador to Kyiv, and today I am asking my colleague and friend Volodymyr Zelensky from this tribune to return the ambassador to Tbilisi to strengthen the connection between our peoples in these difficult minutes," Zourabichvili said.

"Only Russia stands to gain" from any disagreement between Georgia and Ukraine, she said.

"I will not go back to the issue of the pardoning of Saakashvili as I have already given an answer once, she said.

Zourabichvili said that using the events in Ukraine to revive this issue "only means deepening polarization in our society."

"Any attempt to cause any disagreement between us and Ukraine is unacceptable, and I will not let that happen," she said.

Zourabichvili pointed out the positions of the Georgian government and opposition towards Ukraine and assistance to it.

"The ruling majority, instead of seeking accord in society, is calling the opposition a traitor or a party of war. The opposition, for its part, unequivocally declares any statement or decision of the authorities pro-Russian, instead of looking for ways to achieve accord. Both these approaches are totally unacceptable, both inside the country and outside it, and they are to a certain extent dangerous," Zourabichvili said.

She called on the ruling majority and opposition to consolidate on issues relating to Georgia's accession to the European Union and "unconditional" support of Ukraine.

Immediately after the events in Ukraine, President Zelensky recalled the ambassador from Tbilisi for consultations over the statements by the Georgian government that Georgia would not join the international sanctions against Russia, and also over the fact that the Georgian government was obstructing the sending of Georgian volunteers to Ukraine.

In spring 2021, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili recalled the ambassador from Kyiv for consultations over the Ukrainian authorities' support of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who is on the wanted list for crimes in Georgia.

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