Georgia’s Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili has stated that the Georgian government has not seen any evidence substantiating the United Kingdom’s decision to impose sanctions on Georgian television companies Imedi and PosTV.
Minister claimed that the Georgian side requested clarification from the British Ambassador regarding the grounds for the sanctions.
“We do not assume that anyone in London regularly watches PosTV or Imedi. Therefore, the decision to impose sanctions was likely based on information provided from Tbilisi. We asked the Ambassador what assessments the decision was based on. I have not seen any evidence or documents justifying this step,” Bochorishvili said.
She noted that no concrete information had been presented to the Georgian authorities.
“I only heard general assessments, such as claims that Georgia is strengthening Russia or weakening Ukraine, or that Georgian society is undermining Ukraine’s territorial integrity. These are accusations and evaluations that we do not share. Such claims require evidence, and we hope that something will be presented that would allow us to believe the decision had at least some basis. However, if I said that I truly expected this, I would not be honest,” the Minister stated.
Bochorishvili further described the sanctions as a direct attack on Georgian society.
“I asked the Ambassador what objectives are served by providing inaccurate information to the capital, which then becomes the basis for such decisions. This is a direct attack on Georgian society, and naturally, we cannot agree with it. Nor can we agree with the claim that this decision in any way contributes to weakening Russia,” she added.
The British government recently imposed sanctions on Imedi and PosTV. In connection with the move, the British Ambassador to Georgia, Gareth Ward, was summoned to the Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for an explanation. The Ambassador did not comment to the media either before entering or after leaving the Ministry.
Related story: UK Ambassador summoned to Foreign Ministry over sanctions on Imedi and POS TV
