Like Romania and Spain, Italy has also refuted the claims made by Georgia's illegitimate Prime Minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, regarding the December 16 meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.
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The Foreign Ministry stated that Italy strongly condemns the recent violence in Georgia and supports the measures proposed by Kaja Kallas, including sanctions, which were “blocked due to a lack of consensus among other member states.”
“Our country also joined the consensus on the initiative to suspend the agreement on the facilitation of diplomatic visas.
Finally, Italy reiterated that the European Union must remain on the side of the Georgian people and expressed the hope that Tbilisi's recent decisions, which have blocked its European path, can be reconsidered,” the Italian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
On December 16, the EU Foreign Affairs Council discussed the latest developments in Georgia and agreed on the need to suspend the visa-free regime for holders of diplomatic passports. The European Commission is expected to present this proposal later this year.
The Council also considered imposing individual sanctions; however, Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, noted that the agreement of all 27 member states is required.
Following the Foreign Affairs Council meeting, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced that he and his Slovak counterpart had vetoed the sanctions against certain senior Georgian police officials.
At a government briefing on December 17, Georgia’s illegitimate Prime Minister thanked five EU countries—Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Spain, and Romania—for “expressing a position in support of the Georgian people” at the Foreign Affairs Council. According to Kobakhidze, the Georgian government publicly acknowledged these five countries but believes “the list of countries opposing sanctions is even wider.”
