საინფორმაციო სააგენტო ინტერპრესნიუსი

The EU Ambassador to Georgia has our full support and trust, and his statements accurately reflect and respect the European Union’s position, said Anita Hipper, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Commission, during a press conference in Brussels in response to a question from InterpressNews.

There is commotion near the courtroom inside the Tbilisi City Court building, where the preliminary hearing of Zurab (Girchi) Japaridze is scheduled to take place.

"I do not believe that Lithuania’s decision is based on principled considerations related to elections, human rights protection, or any other declared issue — I think this double game is largely driven by a specific political scenario aimed at changing the government," said the First Vice Speaker of Parliament, Gia Volski, in a comment to journalists.

The court has been turned into a fortress, all the doors are locked. It seems they are planning to arrest Zurab Japaridze — this is today's prison-state. Opposition politician Gigi Ugulava made this statement to journalists.

The Head of the Patrol Police, Vazha Siradze, has explained the reason for the mobilization of police forces near Tbilisi City Court.

A large number of police officers have been mobilized outside Tbilisi City Court, where the pretrial hearing of Zurab “Girchi” Japaridze, a member of the “Coalition for Change”, is scheduled to take place in a few hours.

According to the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, Shalva Papuashvili, Lithuania’s decision to revoke the visa-free regime for Georgian citizens holding diplomatic and service passports constitutes a gross and legally unfounded violation of the 2010 international agreement titled “Agreement between the European Union and Georgia on the Facilitation of the Issuance of Visas.”

“Paying bail doesn’t free anyone from the threat of imprisonment. The risk remains. So how someone makes their decision depends on them. This topic has been artificially brought into the public discourse. We need to refocus and stop debating with each other. Instead, we should continue making decisions aimed at weakening this regime” - Saba Buadze, one of the leaders of “Lelo/Strong Georgia,” made this statement on PalitraNews' program “Day’s Newsroom.”

Rusudan Sharadze, the daughter of the murdered professor Guram Sharadze, made this statement during a session of the parliamentary temporary investigative commission.

"I don’t want to see an opposition politician in prison. Zurab Japaridze can do much more for this country while free, and therefore, of course, we condemn his arrest," said Giorgi Sharashidze, a member of Gakharia – For Georgia, during his appearance on PalitraNews’s Daily Newsroom program.

The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association, Studio Monitor, and Georgia’s Voice, along with their leaders, have filed a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court requesting the annulment of the “Foreign Agents Registration Act” and the suspension of the relevant provisions of the law until the case is resolved.

The question was provocative, and the diplomat could only respond the way he did — by saying that if such a situation exists, there would be an appropriate response in any other region. But such a government does not exist in Georgia, said Archil Gorduladze, Chairman of the Legal Affairs Committee, when assessing U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s remarks.

Lithuania has revoked the visa-free regime for Georgian citizens who hold diplomatic and official passports.

Bail does not release a person from the criminal prosecution initiated by the regime – don’t rush, don’t be quick to sacrifice or dismiss someone when you don’t even know them or their plans.

Referring to the parliament elected by the people as "illegitimate," along with spreading disinformation, is a rejection of democratic institutions – this is what the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, wrote on social media, sharing a statement from GYLA.

A court hearing for Zurab “Girchi” Japaridze will be held today at Tbilisi City Court, in connection with his failure to appear before the parliamentary temporary investigative commission. The session is scheduled for 3:00 PM.

Ana Dolidze, one of the leaders of the For the People – Strong Georgia coalition, places responsibility for the attack on German Ambassador Peter Fischer on the Special State Protection Service.­­

A political party should always be preparing for elections, no matter what is happening in the country. That’s what we’re doing — we are preparing, – said Giorgi Sioridze, one of the leaders of "Strong Georgia," on Palitra News’s program 360 Degrees.

The only conclusion we can draw from today’s response is that there is no clear position regarding Georgia—especially in the context of discussions related to U.S. national interests. The entire hearing, and not only the hearing, shows that the core of U.S. foreign policy today revolves around American national interests, – said Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili.­­