Maia Kopaleishvili: The European Commission report turned out heavier than any of us expected – it doesn’t contain a single positive word about Georgia - As for the constitutional lawsuit, Georgian Dream is creating the precedent for its own banning
“The European Commission report is much heavier than any of us expected. In this report not one positive word is said about Georgia,” said Maia Kopaleishvili, member of the Coalition for Change, on PalitraNews programme 'Free Studio', responding to the EU Enlargement Report.
According to Kopaleishvili, Georgian Dream has neither the readiness nor the interest to return to the EU orbit.
“It is a very heavy report. We expected something like this given all the actions, the dozens of repressed people, and every step Georgian Dream is taking against Georgian society. But the report is even heavier than we feared – because not a single positive word is said about Georgia. It explicitly states that Georgia is not even at the 2023 level and that only the label “candidate status” remains formally; in every other respect, Georgia cannot achieve EU membership. We must say plainly: under Georgian Dream, it is impossible for Georgia to become an EU member. That is why the government must change.
When this crucial document was handed over today, the Foreign Minister didn’t even dare to meet anyone or make a public statement. Then we saw official comments blaming the European institutions and Brussels instead of themselves. So there is no readiness – let’s not fool ourselves. Georgian Dream no longer even has the capacity, because it is wholly focused on violence and punishing free speech. Georgian Dream has no interest in returning to the EU orbit. And it’s not because they decide this themselves – Russia decides, and Georgian Dream executes,” Kopaleishvili said.
On Georgian Dream’s constitutional lawsuit to ban opposition parties, Kopaleishvili said the suit is groundless and completely unfit to be submitted by so many MPs.
“I want to tell Georgian Dream: every single point they level against other parties applies one-to-one to Georgian Dream itself. With this lawsuit they are creating the precedent for their own banning, because it is Georgian Dream that:
- obstructs democracy in this country,
- must admit the loss of territorial integrity,” Kopaleishvili declared.
