The UK Minister for Europe, North America, and the Overseas Territories, Stephen Doughty, expressed "serious concerns" regarding the actions of Georgian government officials.

During his speech in the House of Commons, the British minister spoke about the "crackdown on peaceful demonstrators" and emphasized that such actions are entirely unacceptable.

Doughty reiterated the measures the UK has taken in response:

"I have serious concerns about the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators by Georgian officials, and this is completely unacceptable.

In response, we have suspended assistance to the Georgian government, restricted defense cooperation, and limited engagement with the 'Georgian Dream.' We have also imposed visa bans and sanctions on those responsible for the violence.

We continue to work with our international partners to support an open and free civil society and media in Georgia”, – said Stephen Doughty, the UK Minister for Europe, North America, and the Overseas Territories, during his speech in the House of Commons.

Doughty also responded to a question from MP Peran Moon (Labour Party) about whether the UK plans to sanction Bidzina Ivanishvili, similar to the US. Moon described Ivanishvili as a “Putin-backed oligarch and the de facto ruler of Georgia” who employs the same "tactics" to suppress peaceful protests as those used in Russia.

Moon explained that a significant portion of Ivanishvili’s wealth is located in the UK or British overseas territories.

"First of all, I would like to thank him [Peran Moon] and the members of the PACE delegation for their important work, including on the issue of Georgia. It is crucial that we stand together with our European partners on such matters in the Council of Europe.

In coordination with the US, the UK has sanctioned the Minister of Internal Affairs [Gomelauri], his deputy [Darakhvelidze], and three police commanders responsible for violence against journalists and peaceful demonstrators in Georgia.

While we continue to closely monitor the situation in Georgia, we do not comment on potential future sanctions, as doing so would undermine the outcome,” – stated Doughty.