Having less influence of rich businessmen upon politics would strengthen Georgia, the new Ambassador of the European Union in Georgia, Pawel Herczynski, said in an exclusive interview with InterPressNews.

According to him, the above would attract foreign investments.

“The issue is very simple. And this is not an issue that is only unique to Georgia. This issue is quite common in all post Soviet space. There are vested interests, and there is too much influence of business upon politics. And I think that having less influence of rich businessmen upon politics would strengthen Georgia, would attract foreign investment, would make sure that this country is attractive for prospective investors. It's for Georgians to decide, and we sincerely hope that the progress will be made also when it comes to this issue," he said.

In addition, to the question of whether the West, and specifically the European Union, is considering the issue of imposing sanctions, including on Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Ambassador emphasized that there are no names mentioned in the 12 recommendations.

“Just for the sake of clarity, let me underline that within the 12 recommendations there are no names. We do not interfere with the internal politics here, we are taking about the process, but we are not mentioning any names. When it comes to the EU sanctions policy, our sanctions against Russia are the most robust ever. And those decisions taken by 27 states are based on unanimity, so all member states have to agree and of course this needs to be very well documented and very well founded. So this process of EU sanctions is constantly being updated based on unanimity and based on the solid evidence that needs to always stand behind any entry into the European Union sanction list," he said.