Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze sharply criticized Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s suggestion of suspending visa-free travel with Georgia, calling it “blackmail” and “deeply regrettable.”
“This is blackmail! And blackmail will remain blackmail. These kinds of threats are sad and unacceptable,” Kobakhidze told journalists in response to Tusk’s statement in the Polish Parliament.
He stressed that the Georgian people should not be punished or threatened for their democratic choices. “The Georgian people made their choice—for peace, development, and European integration. Whether some like it or not, that choice must be respected,” he said.
Kobakhidze argued that such pressure only damages the image of European institutions in Georgia and expressed hope for a change in attitude. “This kind of rhetoric has been used for years and hasn’t worked. It won’t now either.”
Tusk’s comments came during a parliamentary speech on illegal migration, where he mentioned potentially suspending visa-free travel for countries, including Georgia, if migration posed a threat to public order. He clarified that the measure could apply more broadly to any country seen as contributing to such risks.
