Georgia FM says European Parliament resolution based on “false narratives”

Georgia’s Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili has said that a European Parliament resolution calling for sanctions against the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, and other officials is based on “false narratives”, but added that it cannot be completely ignored by Tbilisi.

“These documents are entirely built on lies and false narratives, which are created with the sole purpose of damaging our country’s interests and undermining its reputation,” Bochorishvili said in an interview with the Imedi television channe, News.Az reports, citing News Georgia.

“These documents have no binding force and carry no political weight… Nevertheless, for us, the European Parliament is an EU institution just like the European Commission and the Council of the European Union, so we cannot fully ignore its documents,” she added.

Bochorishvili said that European Parliament resolutions are not legally binding and “largely mean nothing”, but argued that they help shape political narratives that can influence perceptions of Georgia within the European Union.

“For this reason, Tbilisi should not leave such campaigns unanswered, even if they are authored by three Members of the European Parliament,” she said.

On 17 June, the European Parliament adopted a tough resolution on Georgia by 436 votes to 145. MEPs cited a “dramatic deterioration” of the situation in the country, describing the methods of the ruling Georgian Dream party as a “mirror image of Russian hybrid tactics”, and again refused to recognise the legitimacy of parliamentary elections held in late 2024.

The resolution called on EU member states to impose personal sanctions, including asset freezes and visa bans, on Georgian Dream founder billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, senior party figures, as well as judges and prosecutors. It also urged the repeal of several controversial laws, including the foreign agents legislation, and the release of critics of the government, whom the European Parliament refers to as “political prisoners”.

In addition, the resolution called for restrictive measures against pro-government Georgian television channels Imedi, PosTV and Rustavi 2, accusing them of “systematic disinformation against the EU”, citing the example of the United Kingdom, which has already imposed sanctions on two of these broadcasters in February.

News.Az