The Government of Georgia has expressed concern over the presence of Zurab Adeishvili as the advisor to the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, and Giorgi Lortkipanidze as the head of the counterintelligence service. After Adeishvili's visits to Brussels and Berlin, the government stated that to normalize relations between the two countries, the Ukrainian authorities must hand over the criminals to Georgia.
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The government expresses “deep worry and concern” over “the attitude of the Ukrainian authorities towards the friendly country of Ukraine - Georgia and the Georgian people.”
“Since Ukraine is involved in a war and is defending itself from Russian military aggression, we refrained from taking a position on this attitude of the Ukrainian authorities for a long time. However, after the visit of Zurab Adeishvili as part of the Ukrainian delegation to Brussels and Berlin, we are forced to express our position clearly," the government administration stated today, March 11, in the statement.
"People who are wanted or who have been sentenced for various crimes still hold high positions in the Ukrainian government. From this point of view, the presence of Zurab Adeishvili in the position of the advisor to the Prosecutor General of Ukraine and Giorgi Lortkifanidze in the position of the Deputy Head of the Counterintelligence Service of Ukraine is particularly worrying. These individuals were in charge of the authoritarian regime of the previous government of Georgia, which cost the lives, health, and well-being of many people.
Zurab Adeishvili is convicted of the illegal confiscation of a wine factory, seizure of the TV company Iberia, kidnapping of Koba Davitashvili and brutal violence against him, torture of prisoners, and bankruptcy of Cartu Bank. He is also accused of raiding and kidnapping TV company Imedi, the violence of November 7, 2007, and the cover-up of Robakidze's murder. Giorgi Lortkifanidze is accused of the violence of May 26, 2011, and the illegal border crossing in cases of aiding Mikheil Saakashvili.
The government notes that the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia has repeatedly applied to the Ukrainian side regarding the transfer of these individuals. Despite this, “the authorities of Ukraine did not show the necessary respect for the state of Georgia and did not hand over the criminals of Georgia.”
“It is not clear to the Georgian government why the Ukrainian government takes such decisions, which are aimed at artificially separating two friendly countries and peoples from each other.
We express our hope that the Ukrainian authorities will reconsider the decisions that are in direct conflict with the spirit of friendship between Georgia and Ukraine, and between the Georgian and Ukrainian peoples. “First and foremost, to regulate relations, it is important and necessary for the Ukrainian authorities to hand over to Georgia the criminals who currently hold high positions in the Ukrainian government," states the government of Georgia.
Today, a meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia with the Ambassador of the European Union, Pawel Herczynski, and the Ambassador of Germany, Peter Fischer, during which the ambassadors were officially informed of the concerns of the Georgian side regarding Zurab Adeishvili's participation in the meetings.
Zurab Adeishvili, a citizen of Ukraine and an advisor to the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, was part of the Ukrainian delegation in Brussels and Berlin. He, along with Ukraine's Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, met with Gert Jan Koopman, Director General of the European Commission's Directorate General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations in Brussels, which drew criticism from Georgian Dream leaders.
“When you meet Adeishvili and talk to him about justice, the words of such people regarding justice towards Georgia are certainly no longer as convincing as they should be. We strictly adhere to sanctions imposed by the European Union or other countries and ensure that they are not circumvented. It seems that in some European countries, they ignore the court sanctions imposed by Georgia,” said the Speaker of the Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili. He also demanded an explanation from the ambassadors of the European Union and Germany.
According to the representation of the European Union in Georgia, the “representation” of the meeting between Gert Jan Koopman and the Ukrainian delegation is disinformation directed against the European Union.
