The resolution has no value, the general secretary of Georgian Dream, the Mayor of Tbilisi, Kakha Kaladze, stated while commenting on the European Parliament resolution about the health condition of Mikheil Saakashvili.
According to Kakha Kaladze, the document cannot not be valuable when "we are told that a philanthropist should be sanctioned".
"I said in the morning that I did not expect anything new or different from the resolution, and the result is really the same. There is nothing new about the resolution, it has no value, it has no price. When lies, forgery and patronage of criminals are spoken of with direct references, this resolution certainly cannot be serious.
To be honest, since 2012, our government has been doing everything and is still doing everything to make our country a member of the big family called Europe as quickly as possible. We implemented many specific projects. There were many successes despite the difficulties. Even today, we deserved to receive the status, but there was a political decision to not give it. They did this against the government of our country.
As for the next steps - we were given a 12-point plan, and here too our government is doing everything to fulfill these points and get the status, and what is happening at this time? At this time, someone called Kubilius comes out and tells us that if Saakashvili, who is a criminal in the full sense and Strasbourg confirmed it, is not released, the country will not receive the status. I ask the population of our country, who has a desire for European integration, is this attitude, these approaches acceptable? Do we have self-respect? Do we love our country, our homeland? If they talk to us and the government, which represents the majority of the population of our country, in the language of blackmail, is it acceptable? I am sure that not a single self-respecting Georgian person will accept the talk with this vocabulary, which is used by our so-called friends in relation to our country. We love our homeland, our people. We defended, we defend the interests of our homeland and we will always do so. Of course, we are an interesting country for Europe and we consider ourselves Europeans. The traditions of my country, the values that our country has been standing on for centuries are also important to me, and these decisions, these absurd, insulting statements, of course, damage everything.
The document will not be valuable if it talks about the direct patronage of the criminal by his lobbyists. The document will not be valuable when we are told that a philanthropist should be sanctioned," said Kakha Kaladze.
For information, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the health condition of the former president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili. The resolution "underlines the fundamental role that oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili has played in Saakashvili’s ongoing detention as part of a personal vendetta". The European Parliament "therefore reiterates its call on the Council and democratic partners to consider imposing sanctions on Mr Ivanishvili for his role in the deterioration of the political process in Georgia".
In the resolution, the European Parliament expresses grave concerns about the deteriorating health of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.
MEPs call on the Georgian authorities to release Saakashvili and allow him to receive proper medical treatment abroad. They urge current President Salome Zourabichvili to use her constitutional right to pardon him.
According to MEPs, the continuing failure to improve the former President’s situation risks hampering Georgia’s EU candidacy prospects.
577 MEPs supported the resolution, 33 voted against it, and 26 abstained.