“This is nothing new from Brussels. When we see criticism, it should be followed by constructive discussion. We have been calling for such a discussion for years, and we continue to do so today, but they refuse to engage,” Irakli Kirtskhalia, leader of the parliamentary majority, said at a press briefing following a majority meeting, commenting on a statement by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas.

Kirtskhalia described Kallas’s remarks as one-sided and brazen.

“They refuse to engage in discussion in Brussels, their diplomatic representatives refuse to engage, and neither does the network of agents they control, which obeys and is directed like a group of unquestioning slaves—those who call themselves the so-called opposition.

“It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion when you tell Georgians that they supposedly should not adopt a transparency law and that the European path supposedly lies in a lack of transparency. It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion when you tell Georgians, or any nation that values its faith, dignity and self-respect, that banning so-called LGBTQ campaigns is supposedly un-European.

“It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion when you tell Georgians that a man should be able to go to a Public Service Hall and become a woman, or vice versa, that a woman should become a man. It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion when you tell Georgians that same-sex marriage should be allowed in our country and that this is supposedly what it means to be European. These are the laws they are talking about. They have been demanding their repeal for years, yet they refuse to engage in a discussion about them.

“It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion with the government and society in a country where you tell Georgians that setting fire to police officers and administrative buildings, throwing so-called Molotov cocktails, and pursuing revolutionary scenarios supposedly constitute freedom of expression and speech.

“It is difficult to say this and defend such positions to Georgians and any nation that values its dignity and independent thought. And, of course, we continue to hear such brazen statements.

“It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion when they have branded this law—the transparency law—as the ‘Russian law.’ They are among the authors of this narrative, and our so-called agents are co-authors of the major deception they labelled the ‘Russian law.’ It is extremely difficult to engage in a discussion and ask them why it is Russian and expect an explanation. All we hear are one-sided, brazen statements.

“Such brazen statements are precisely what undermine their reputation and the values on which the European Union was founded. This is why, unfortunately, we are seeing surveys not only in Georgia concerning trust in the EU, its ratings and its overall political vision, but also within the European Union itself, showing the impressions and opinions held by people in EU member states about the policies pursued by the political leadership in Brussels today,” Kirtskhalia said.