Great Britain's ambassador to Georgia, Mark Clayton, stated that the Russian Law on so-called Foreign Agents might significantly damage many good works.
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"There are many comments from Georgia's partners, who have done much for Georgia's future over the past 30 years, opposing the adoption of this law and the legalization of the concept of foreign influence in this form. Here, I can repeat what Joseph Borrell said a few days ago: under this law, Georgia's prospects of joining the European Union are de facto frozen. Thus, if Georgia wants to move forward, it needs to reconsider this law and decide what it is doing to truly progress. At this point, I think the EU's stance is clear: this law is not compatible with EU membership requirements. EU member states should discuss this issue more.
I will explain what this law means from the perspective of our embassy's activities. This law could significantly damage many good things we do in Georgia. A major area where we support Georgia is the reconciliation process with Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
This support takes various forms. One part of the effort is conducted through the OSCE to protect Georgia's sovereignty. The UN, alongside the UK, has secured a resolution on the return of IDPs. Politically, our support and stance are entirely clear. However, regarding financing, we cooperate with community organizations that, under this law, would be labeled as foreign agents. I believe this is incorrect, as they work to support the reconciliation policy of the Georgian government. The risk of this law is that these organizations may be stigmatized, and their work could come to a halt," said Mark Clayton in an interview with BMG.
The diplomat noted that Georgia's civil sector is "already very transparent" and that the state has detailed access to their cash flows.
British investors are also watching the developments in Georgia. According to Mark Clayton, the prospect that Georgians could be sanctioned because of Russian Law impacts them, but more than the sanctions, they are more nervous about the "orchestrated campaign of intimidation." He stated, "They look at the international press, such as the Guardian and the Economist." Currently, Georgia does not look good in the international media. They read about instability, violence, and the intimidation of civil society representatives. As a result, they are cautious about their investments," the ambassador noted.
At the end of May, the parliamentary majority of Georgian Dream, with the support of 83 deputies, finally approved the Russian Law on so-called Foreign Agents. The ruling party disregarded the strong recommendation of the Venice Commission to withdraw the law, as well as the warnings from international partners that such legislation would harm Georgia's Euro-Atlantic integration process.
