“If they still have not understood that, for the sake of Georgia’s national interests, we will not change our conduct on patriotic issues, that is their problem. We will continue pursuing our just policy to protect the Georgian people and Georgia’s future,” said Georgian Dream MP Tengiz Sharmanashvili while commenting on the European Parliament’s report.

According to him, sanctions will have no impact on them.

“This political persecution has been going on for a long time, so there is nothing new about it. Not only are they threatening us with sanctions, in many cases they have already imposed them. As they have already realized, such measures do not influence us when Georgia’s national interests are at stake. If they still have not understood that we will not alter our behavior on patriotic issues because of Georgia’s national interests, that is their problem. We will continue our just policy in defense of the Georgian people and Georgia’s future,” Sharmanashvili said.

Responding to a question about the section of the European Parliament report concerning visa-free travel, Sharmanashvili said that those shaping policy in the European Parliament are pursuing an undemocratic agenda, but that this would not affect the Georgian authorities.

“If you noticed, there was a very interesting passage calling for sanctions related to visa-free travel, and they specifically listed non-governmental organizations, saying they should not be affected. Apparently, those they consider their agents should be exempt, while the rest of the Georgian population - including you - should be affected. This is their attitude. They promote segregation everywhere: between individuals, between groups, and they have even reached the point of discussing segregation among EU member states, suggesting that different countries should have different rights and powers.

This is the kind of consistent and undemocratic policy pursued both within the Euro-bureaucracy and in the European Parliament. But it will not influence us,” he stated.

As for the section of the report referring to individuals allegedly imprisoned for political reasons, Sharmanashvili argued that “no one has been imprisoned in Georgia on political grounds.”

“All the cases that were claimed to involve politically motivated detention or imprisonment were taken to the Strasbourg Court, and you know very well how those cases ended. If anyone believes they have been imprisoned or prosecuted for political reasons, they will find out the truth if they appeal to the European Court of Human Rights and the Court concludes that no such violation occurred.

I do not know how many more times this narrative must fail before people stop repeating it. They themselves know very well that it is not true. If they are so convinced, they should help those individuals bring their cases before the Strasbourg Court and then see how it ends,” Tengiz Sharmanashvili said.