PM slams opposition figures of ‘serving foreign interests’, renews criticism of ex-PM Gakharia

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has criticized opposition politicians during a parliamentary report on Friday, accusing them of acting against national interests and defending the government's stance on the 2008 war, the June 20, 2019 protests sparked by presence of Russian MPs in the state legislature, and the Chorchana police post dispute.

Addressing members of the opposition For Georgia party, founded by former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, Kobakhidze said Georgia would continue to be governed by what he described as a sovereign government.

“Foreign agents have no place in the Georgian government anymore, and accordingly, your party has no place in the Georgian government either,” Kobakhidze told opposition lawmakers.

The prime minister argued that the government led by former President Mikheil Saakashvili was responsible for the events that led to the 2008 Russia-Georgia war, which he described as a betrayal of the country's interests.

According to Kobakhidze, the current government bears responsibility for ensuring that similar political forces do not return to power.

Kobakhidze also renewed criticism of Gakharia's handling of the June 20, 2019 protests outside Parliament, when police used force to disperse demonstrators attempting to enter the legislature.

The prime minister rejected claims by Gakharia's allies that orders regarding the use of rubber bullets may have been issued by individuals other than the then interior minister.

“If someone bypassed the interior minister and ordered the use of force, why did he remain interior minister and later become prime minister?” Kobakhidze asked.

He argued that the chain of command made it implausible that such decisions could have been taken without the knowledge or involvement of the minister responsible for law enforcement operations.

The prime minister also addressed questions regarding the village of Chorchana, where tensions escalated in 2019 after Georgian authorities established a police checkpoint near the administrative boundary line with the Russian-backed breakaway region of Tskhinvali.

Kobakhidze claimed that Chorchana remains the only case in which Russian-backed forces advanced significantly beyond what he described as the previously existing boundary line.

“Chorchana is not your topic. The less you mention it, the better,” he told opposition lawmakers, accusing Gakharia of responsibility for developments in the area.