US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan says any suggestion of the United States intervention in the court is untrue.
Degnan said this while commenting on the statement of Mtavari Arkhi Founder Nika Gvaramia’s case judge Lasha Chkhikvadze.
“Any suggestion of US involvement in the proceedings here is simply not true. We have spent years helping Georgia to create free and impartial, transparent justice. This is the main cornerstone of the rule of law. We will continue to work with the many partners we have in Georgia’s justice system. There is a transparent, impartial judicial system,” she noted.
Degnan claimed that the US court support programs are open.
“I cannot say anything for the judge. I can tell you that our programs are open to many professionals in the judiciary who are interested in coming to the US and sharing best practices. This program remains open to Georgian participants,” she said.
Tbilisi City Court judge Lasha Chkhikvadze issued a statement today, claiming that he had a meeting with the representative of the US Embassy after the announcement of the verdict in Nika Gvaramia’s case, who told him that the Ambassador was interested in why he made a guilty verdict and used imprisonment as a punishment.
The judge notes that the employee of the US embassy told him that he was removed from the list of judges who were supposed to travel to the US.
