“I congratulate Ms. Salome Zurabishvili on this well-deserved award. She was indeed correctly identified as a promoter of foreign interests in Georgia,” Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili told journalists, commenting on the news that Freedom House will present Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, with the Mark Palmer Prize.

According to Papuashvili, Mark Palmer is known as an ideologue of “color revolutions,” and Salome Zurabishvili has earned the award.

“I congratulate Ms. Salome Zurabishvili on this well-deserved award. She truly deserves the Mark Palmer Prize. Palmer was a United States diplomat who was an ideologue of ‘color revolutions’ and interference in the internal affairs of other countries. He was one of the first to promote the idea, through his diplomatic career, that America should intervene in the domestic affairs of other states. Therefore, he is known as an ideologue of ‘color revolutions.’

So I congratulate Ms. Salome on this deserved award. She was correctly singled out as a promoter of foreign interests in Georgia. It is fitting that someone who advances foreign interests in Georgia receives an award named after an ideologue of advancing foreign interests abroad.

I pay attention to the assessments of the Georgian people regarding our legislation, as well as the position of the Georgian Church on certain laws. Just recently, we saw the position of the Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia and the Georgian Church regarding the Family Values Law - that these laws should not only remain in force, but should actually be expanded and strengthened.

When we have a choice between listening to Brussels or to the Georgian Church, we choose the Georgian Church. Brussels may not like it, but those who are upset by it can drink a glass of cold water,” Papuashvili said.

For context, Freedom House will present Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, with the Mark Palmer Prize in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the defense of democracy and human rights.

According to the organization, the award highlights Zurabishvili’s significant role in recent years in defending Georgia’s European course and democratic development. The presentation of the 2026 Mark Palmer Prize is also described as recognition of her principled leadership and steadfast commitment to democratic values, according to information released by Zurabishvili’s press office.