Macron, Merz, and Tusk condemn Georgian government in Independence Day address

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Freidrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, have issued a joint address to the Georgian people on the country’s independence day, condemning the Georgian government’s crackdown on dissent.

The three leaders said they were sending a message of ‘friendship and solidarity to the Georgian people’ in their statement to mark Georgia’s Independence Day on 26 May.

The statement said they supported the ‘democratic and European aspirations of the Georgian people’, and therefore ‘condemn all activities of the Georgian authorities resulting in the democratic backsliding and the attacks against civil society, media and government critics.’

‘Freedom of expression and of assembly must be upheld. Reports of excessive violence must be investigated’, they added.

France, Germany, and Poland, who form the so-called ‘Weimar Triangle’, have increasingly been seen as the leading forces shaping EU foreign policy since Tusk came to power in 2023.

The statement said that laws that ‘contradict European standards’ should be ‘amended’ and that ‘much-needed’ reforms should restart. It also called for the government to ‘re-establish a dialogue’ with the opposition and civil society.

‘The people of Georgia should not be deprived of the opportunities associated with the country’s European path’, the leaders said.

Despite displaying the flag of Europe prominently outside parliament for Monday’s celebrations, during their speeches marking the day, Georgia’s leaders continued to rail against ‘outside forces’ who they said were attempting to ‘destabilise’ the country.

Since beginning their widespread crackdown on dissent in February 2022, the ruling Georgian Dream Party has insisted that a ‘global war party’ or ‘deep state’ has taken control over the West, including Europe, and that it has been attempting to undermine the country’s sovereignty.

In parallel to Monday’s official celebrations, several marches took place as part of the protests that have been ongoing since November, in response to the government’s announcement they were halting the country’s EU accession process ‘until 2028’.

In a brief response to the statement on Facebook Monday, the speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, called it a ‘shameful attack on the Georgian people and the Georgian state on their national holiday’.

EU diplomat denied entry to Georgia

It remains unclear so far on what grounds Vandenbroucke was denied entry to Georgia.

OC MediaMikheil Gvadzabia