"Now Mr. Peter is trying to provoke us even more instead of apologizing - this looks like waving fists after a fight." This is how Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili responded to a journalist's question concerning the statement by German Ambassador Peter Fischer, in which he said there are facts about the Kulevi port evading sanctions.

As Papuashvili noted, "Mr. Peter made a mistake, and he made it because he was pleased. This is malicious joy that could be read in his statement and on his face at the time."

"This looks like waving fists after a fight. He made a mistake when he imagined himself to be the EU Ambassador and started commenting on his own time regarding the EU's 20th sanctions package. The EU has its own ambassador here and does not need the assistance of Germany or other countries for comments. He takes the liberty to speak instead of the EU Ambassador and to replace him. Perhaps he thinks he has more to say than the EU Ambassador. If there was anything to say, Mr. Harchinski would have no difficulty saying it and would have said everything. He made a mistake, and he made it because he was pleased. This is malicious joy that could be read in Mr. Peter's statement and on his face at the time: 'Look, Georgians, now see what will happen to your port.' In addition to showing us this malicious joy—how pleased he is when something bad happens in Georgia—he immediately made a second mistake by claiming that evidence had been presented. If he himself has seen this evidence, fine, he doesn't have to show it to us. Of course he has not seen it, because it does not exist in nature.

You remember that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the EU Ambassador and demanded evidence. Not a single piece of evidence was presented that Georgia had violated any sanction. There is not a single piece of evidence that any sanction violation occurred on Georgian territory. The result of this was that in the end we received a letter from the coordinator on this issue. Now Mr. Peter is trying to provoke us even more instead of apologizing for announcing with malicious joy that some evidence supposedly exists. By doing so he fed propaganda media so that Georgia could once again become an object of attack. In the end, nothing was proven.

As for the second part of his statement [where he referred to TV company 'Imedi' as 'sanctioned media'], I think Mr. Peter also imagined himself to be the British Ambassador when speaking about sanctions. This attack is from the British side; otherwise Germany should make its own decisions. Why is Mr. Peter speaking instead of the British Ambassador or instead of Britain and using such hostile labels against free media?! In general, this also reveals that malicious joy and, unfortunately, contempt for free media and that part of Georgian society that does not suit his taste.

Finally, it seems that sticking such labels has become a habit. I would urge Mr. Peter to stop sticking labels. This is not what a representative of Germany should be engaged in—sticking labels and stigmatizing people," Papuashvili stated.

For information: Germany's Ambassador to Georgia, Peter Fischer, confirmed that the Kulevi port was included in the EU's proposal for the 20th sanctions package against Russia, but, according to him, it was later removed after the bloc received commitments from the Georgian government and the port operator SOCAR to fulfill obligations.

"Georgian media, including sanctioned parties, constantly ask me to clarify my statement regarding the 20th sanctions package and the Kulevi port. I confirm my statement that Kulevi was included in the EU proposal and that a package of evidence was presented. The EU Council decides on sanctions. Proposals are submitted by the Commission/European External Action Service. Every proposal has a package of evidence," the ambassador wrote.

In addition, he quoted a letter sent by the EU Special Representative for Sanctions, David O'Sullivan, to Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili, which states that the Kulevi port was removed from the sanctions package after the government and the port operator provided positive commitments.