Georgia turns down US invite for official visit over `pre-condition`
ArmInfo. Tbilisi has turned down a US invitation to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze for an
official visit due to a "pre-condition."
Washington apparently urged Georgia to temporarily halt an ongoing
parliamentary discussion on a controversial "foreign agents" bill.
"Today, the US ambassador's statement was issued, stating that
high-ranking Georgian government officials were invited to the US,
but the Georgian side declined," a Georgian Foreign Ministry
statement said.
"Meetings with arrangements do not embody the spirit of cooperation,
which should be founded on mutual respect and trust," it added.
The statement said that Kobakhidze was invited to the US under the
condition that the Georgian parliament temporarily suspend talks on
the draft bill before the visit, adding that an explanation was given
to the US ambassador.
Earlier in the day, US Ambassador to Tbilisi Robin Dunnigan said in a
statement that they recently invited senior members of Georgia's
government for bilateral talks, but that the Georgian side declined.
The parliament of the South Caucasus country voted Wednesday in
support of the second reading of a controversial "foreign agents"
bill, despite weeks-long protests against the draft legislation
sweeping the capital.
The bill requires organizations, including media outlets, which
receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register with
the state. It also obliges them to publish annual financial reports.
The bill, first introduced in March 2023, was shelved after it
triggered mass protests resulting in the arrest of 66 people and the
injury of more than 50 law enforcement officers.
Last month, Mamuka Mdinaradze, the parliamentary leader of the ruling
Georgian Dream party, said they would resubmit the draft legislation
on the "transparency of foreign influence" to parliament.
Critics say the bill would undermine democracy and have labeled it as
a "Russian law," but members of the ruling majority say it would
boost transparency.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili also declared that she would
veto the bill.
However, Georgian Dream can override the president's veto by
collecting 76 votes, after which the parliament speaker can sign the
bill into law.