This came in an exclusive interview with “Enterpress News,” in which the ambassador continued: “We on the British side decided to freeze the high-level (Wardrop Dialogue) between ministers, which is the first time since the establishment of a formula. We also canceled the high-level talks planned between the Defense Authority and suspended the program.” The new cyber security.
The ambassador expressed his hope that “after the elections, the Georgian government will return to the pro-Western path, and that confidence between the two parties will be restored.”
The ambassador also said: “I expected us to work together to strengthen Georgia’s resilience and our shared prosperity, but over the past year, the Georgian government has chosen a different path, and during my first months in Tbilisi I had to make clear our concerns about declining democracy and growing anti-Western rhetoric.” “I hope that the Georgian government will change its approach, which will allow me to regain optimism.”
The ambassador pointed out that relations between Georgia and Britain, as well as with Western partners, were damaged due to Parliament’s approval of the “Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence” law, known in the media as the “Foreign Agents” law, which the ambassador said “restricts civil society activities,” despite what he called “ The public’s strong opposition to it,” he continued: “We were disappointed when the leaders of (Georgian Dream) began promoting conspiracy theories and assumptions that Western partners are undermining Georgia. We were shocked when “Georgian Dream” set itself a goal in its election program to ban opposition parties.”
The ambassador concluded his speech: “For these reasons, we, the British side, decided, for the first time in ten years, to freeze the annual (Wardrop Dialogue), and we hope that, after the elections, regardless of who will be in the government, we will see clear evidence of a return to the Euro-Atlantic path to rebuilding… Trust and a return to a close partnership.”
This comes in conjunction with warnings by European Union leaders to Georgia, ahead of parliamentary elections later this month, that the country’s government is endangering the country’s path towards the European Union. The content of the draft conclusions prepared for the European Union leaders’ summit in Brussels, October 17-18, affirmed “the Union’s full readiness to support the Georgian people on their European path,” but “expressed grave concern over the course of action taken by the Georgian authority.”
The twenty-seven heads of state and government in the European Union are also expected to announce that “the European Council recalls that such a path jeopardizes Georgia’s path towards accession to the European Union, and effectively halts the accession process,” calling on Tbilisi to adopt democratic reforms.
Last June, the Georgian Parliament approved the draft “Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence” law, or what is conventionally called the controversial “foreign agents” law, which was adopted by overriding President Salome Zurabishvili’s veto, while its opponents point out that it is “anti-democratic.” In light of Brussels and Washington’s threats that the move “will derail Georgia’s efforts to join the European Union,” and “will cause a ban on visas to enter the United States and the imposition of sanctions on some figures.”
The law forces NGOs and media platforms that receive 20% or more of their funding from external sources to register themselves as “organizations seeking to achieve the interests of an external power.”
The project sparked protests from the opposition, while the ruling party affirms its commitment to Georgia’s aspirations and says that the law will ensure “transparency” regarding Western-funded groups that undermine the country’s sovereignty.
Source: Novosti + Enterprise News + Reuters
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