The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia explains why Georgia did not join the joint statement of more than 40 countries, which expresses support for the lawsuit filed by Ukraine against Russia with the International Court of Justice.

As the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told InterPressNews, based on the fact that Georgia itself has filed lawsuits against Russia with various international courts, taking such commitments in advance may affect the processes conducted by Georgia, to which Georgia has directed its maximum efforts.

"At the International Court of Justice, as usual, Georgia continues to support Ukraine in international organizations, including in relation to the mentioned issue. In this regard, it is significant that in March 2022, Georgia, along with 39 other states, applied to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague with a petition to initiate an investigation. The investigation has been started and is actively ongoing. This statement refers to the second court in The Hague - the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where Georgia joined the statement in support of Ukraine in May 2022. This particular case represents the usual working process, which concerns the potential involvement of Georgia as a third party in this legal process and the taking of relevant obligations ("The signatories, which are parties to the Convention on Genocide, express their intention to be involved in the said process"). Based on the fact that Georgia itself has filed lawsuits against Russia with various international courts, taking such obligations in advance may affect the processes conducted by Georgia, to which Georgia has directed its maximum efforts. Georgia, with the involvement of international community, will continue to actively support Ukraine in international organizations," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

For information, more than 40 countries issued a joint statement and expressed their support for the lawsuit filed by Ukraine against Russia with the UN International Court of Justice. The signatory countries call on Russia to immediately stop the war in Ukraine. The statement in support of Ukraine is signed by representatives of more than 40 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Spain, Sweden, Moldova and the European Union.