No one can intimidate Georgia’s government with threats to suspend visa-free travel when the country’s stability and security — essential for its people and future generations — are at stake, Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili said in an interview with Rustavi 2.
“No one can intimidate you by threatening to suspend visa-free travel for the government when, on the other side of the scale, you have the stability and security of the country, which are vital for the future of your country and your children,” Bochorishvili stated.
The Minister also commented on EU decisions and recent statements by EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, stressing that the decision concerning diplomatic passports lacked legal basis and was politically motivated.
“It’s difficult for me to speak about these groups. I don’t understand what groups these could be. First, the decision on diplomatic passports lacked any legal foundation in the way the regime was implemented. We will eventually have the opportunity to discuss how baseless this decision was — legally unjustified and flawed. However, in a political context, it exists,” she said.
Bochorishvili noted that visa requirements for diplomatic passport holders have not caused any critical issues for the country, calling the procedure “a normal process” when applied to specific categories such as ministers or MPs.
“If this is about pressuring these categories, as certain bureaucratic groups in Brussels seem to need as a mechanism, it’s already in place. But this cannot counterbalance what we are doing. No one can intimidate you by threatening to suspend visa-free travel for the government when you are protecting your country’s stability, security, and democratic governance,” she added.
Commenting on the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, Bothorishvili accused “certain parties” of attempting to use “blackmail language” and instrumentalize visa-free travel against Georgia.
“Today in Luxembourg, Georgia was discussed. We saw once again how certain parties try to use blackmail language against Georgia and instrumentalize the visa-free travel policy,” the Minister said.
Bochorishvili claimed that there is no real support within the EU for suspending Georgia’s visa-free regime.
“They are now searching for ways to pursue something that doesn’t have unequivocal support within the EU. Even the harshest critics of Georgia agree that such a policy shouldn’t apply to citizens. There is no readiness in the EU to turn visa-free travel into a political tool,” she stated.
Bochorishvili added that the EU had already introduced a visa regime for holders of diplomatic passports in 2010, calling it a precedent for “using such mechanisms as pressure tools.”
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