Georgian PM: opposition must recognise Gov’t legitimacy before dialogue

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Saturday said representatives of the country’s radical opposition must first recognise the legitimacy and jurisdiction of the Government elected by the Georgian people before any dialogue can take place.

Speaking to journalists, the Prime Minister added while several countries in the world do not recognise the authority of Georgia over 20 per cent of its territory, there are also political forces within the country that refuse to recognise the Government’s legitimacy across the entire territory.

“In the world there are several states that do not recognise the legitimacy of Georgia’s Government over 20 per cent of our territory and inside the country there are political forces that do not recognise the Government’s legitimacy and jurisdiction over 100 per cent. We cannot be loyal to such political forces,” Kobakhidze said.

He referred to a manifesto recently published by nine opposition parties, which he said included references to overthrowing what they described as an illegitimate regime.

“Nine parties issued some manifesto and spoke about overthrowing an illegitimate regime — it is written directly in the manifesto. How are we supposed to talk to such people?” he said.

Kobakhidze said representatives of the radical opposition should first acknowledge the authority of the Government elected by the Georgian people.

“First they must recognise the legitimacy and the jurisdiction of the Government elected by the Georgian people and then we can talk about everything else,” the Prime Minister said.

He added that the opposition has refused to recognise the Government’s legitimacy since 2020, describing the issue as a complex political problem.