Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze criticized Georgian NGOs, with a report by the McCain Institute as a reference, and alleged that they have “pushed the EU to consider putting Georgia’s visa-free regime on hold.”
“Some Georgian NGOs are asking the European Union to suspend Georgia’s visa-free regime,” says the part of the report Kobakhidze addressed.
According to the Prime Minister, these NGOs, alongside the opposition, are promoting a political agenda that he claims aims to ‘punish the Georgian people’ for their support of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
Kobakhidze further stated that the opposition has opposed visa liberalization in the past and that ‘NGOs and political parties explicitly advocated against Georgia receiving candidate status.’
