The Abraham Accords Go Eurasian The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune
Day: April 27, 2026
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia summoned European Union Ambassador Paweł Herczyński on April 27 over his recent remarks made in Brussels, where the diplomat warned, among others, not to let the Georgian people “go back to the dark times.” The summoning followed calls from senior Georgian Dream officials, including Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, to bring in the diplomat over what they denounced as a “threat.”
Herczynski said during April 23 launching ceremony of the “Georgia in Focus” exhibition hosted by the European External Action Service that “Georgia is at a crossroads” and that “the future in Georgia is not written yet, but whatever will be decided in the next weeks and months will determine if Georgia belogs to the family of European countries based on democracy, rule of law, and human rights, or Georgia, unfortunately, would move back to its dark past.”
He further said, “We cannot let Georgia and wonderful, warm, hospitable Georgian people go back to the dark times of violence, civil war, poverty, deprivation, corruption. This is not the future they deserve.”
Georgian Dream Foreign Minister Botchorishvili, who met with the summoned ambassador at Tbilisi’s Ceremonial Palace on Monday afternoon, made comments to journalists afterward, while Ambassador Herczyński left without comment.
“The will of the Georgian people is expressed in its choice of the Government of Georgia,” Botchorishvili said, adding, “Therefore, the government knows best and feels best which crossroads Georgia stands at, how much Georgia’s security needs warning, and how much stability we need in Georgia, and how much we do not need encouragement of further polarization of this society and a radical agenda.”
“Those statements, those actions, those steps taken from Brussels, the attitude that we see toward the Government of Georgia, which, by the way, was elected by the Georgian people, is unacceptable,” she said, adding, “Everything that fuels polarization in our society is unacceptable.”
“Whatever explanations we may hear, facts and actions remain facts and actions. The picture we see is unacceptable. We expect that from Brussels, there will be the attitude that Georgia deserves in good-faith relations.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a statement, saying that Botchorishvili “emphasized at the meeting that the current policy of Brussels toward Georgia, the steps taken and statements made regarding Georgia, undermine trust between the sides and damage the Georgia-EU partnership.”
“Unfortunately, the actions of Brussels can only be assessed as steps encouraging further polarization of Georgian society and a radical agenda,” the ministry said. It further said that Botchorishvili “noted that the Government of Georgia consistently expresses readiness for constructive dialogue and expects a fair and respect-based attitude from the European Union.”
The summoning follows strained relations between Tbilisi and Brussels amid the Georgian Dream’s anti-democratic moves and anti-EU rhetoric. The EU said in November that Georgia is a candidate country “in name only” and moved in February to suspend visa-free travel for Georgian holders of diplomatic and service passports.
Georgian Dream officials and allied media have repeatedly accused European diplomats of interference in domestic affairs. In recent months, authorities have summoned several Western ambassadors, including the ambassadors of Germany and the United Kingdom.
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