This statement once again confirms that the European Union does not consider this government as its partner; instead, it sees the Georgian people as its partner and believes that it should strengthen them," said Salome Samadashvili, one of the leaders of the "Strong Georgia" coalition, during the "Resume" program on Palitra News.

Samadashvili responded to the statement from the EU press office, which announced that the European Union had suspended programs that directly benefited the Georgian government but would not discontinue Erasmus+ mobility and exchange programs with Georgia.

According to her, the honorary chairman of "Georgian Dream," Bidzina Ivanishvili, aims to completely detach Georgia from the European Union, to "wash his hands" of support for NGOs and the media, and to simply isolate the country from Europe.

"This once again confirms the EU's policy of non-recognition of this government. This statement reaffirms that the EU does not consider this government as its partner but rather sees the Georgian people as its partners and believes that they should be empowered, which is very important. By the way, 'Georgian Dream' knows this, and the Russians have already given them instructions on how to prepare for it. The legislative changes that this illegitimate, Russian-controlled parliament is trying to pass are essentially motivated by an attempt to block the aid intended for the Georgian people. They are now trying to obstruct this path as much as possible, and they are not even inventing anything new—they are simply following the same path that Russia and Belarus have taken, receiving instructions from there. The difference is that the Georgian people are not accepting this, as we see in the ongoing protests across the country. Neither the opposition, nor the NGO sector is willing to tolerate it, and we are saying that we do not intend to give up this country because Bidzina Ivanishvili’s goal is to completely detach the EU from our country, to ‘wash his hands’ of Georgia entirely, including support for NGOs and the media, and to simply isolate our country from Europe.

The EU's statement confirms that they do not intend to comply with the demands of Bidzina Ivanishvili’s regime. We are also working very actively to ensure that Georgia is not ‘written off,’ that pressure on the government increases, and that assistance to the Georgian people is expanded," said Samadashvili.

When asked about the opposition's plans in this situation, Samadashvili responded that the opposition is preparing for elections, which is its main objective.

"We are doing what our role requires—working as much as possible to increase people's trust in us as a political force. That is why the 'Strong Georgia' coalition is actively involved in all processes that matter to society today, which cover a wide range of issues. Our involvement in protests is very active. We have now opened special headquarters in Guria and Imereti, shortly after the onset of problems—something that does not happen in a normal country, because in normal countries, the opposition does not have to do the work that the government should be doing. The government collects taxes from the budget to serve the people, but when you have a corrupt, Russian-controlled regime and people are abandoned, we take on the responsibilities that should be handled by the local administration.

We are also working on the international stage, along with other parties. I believe we are taking deliberate steps necessary to force the government to call new elections. There are two important components here: first, the policy of non-recognition of Ivanishvili, which we have significantly contributed to, including with the participation of Salome Zurabishvili, and the international pressure that is being built with the active involvement of political actors like us. Second, there is the public’s rejection and protest, in which we are also actively engaged.

We are preparing for elections—that is our mission, to be ready for elections," said Samadashvili.