Georgia calls out Ukraine’s ‘unacceptable’ move
Ukraine’s decision to recall its ambassador from Georgia is unjustified and unacceptable, the head of the ruling party Irakli Kobakhidze said on Tuesday. Kiev made the move after Georgia would not allow a plane to pick up volunteers for Ukraine’s war against Russia.
“This decision is unacceptable and unjustified, given all that Georgia has done for Ukraine in recent days,” said Kobakhidze, who leads the ruling party Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia. However, he said he won’t continue to criticize the government in Kiev, given the very difficult situation in Ukraine due to the hostilities.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced earlier on Tuesday he was pulling the ambassador back to Kiev for consultations, accusing Georgia of obstructing volunteers who wanted to fight for Ukraine and an “immoral” position about sanctions.
On Monday, Zelensky lifted the visa requirement for foreign volunteers wishing to join Ukraine’s International Legion. However, Georgia denied a Ukrainian plane permission to land at the Tbilisi airport and pick up a group of volunteers that said they wanted to enlist.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said last week that the republic would not join the sanctions imposed by Western countries against Russia.
Moscow ordered troops into Ukraine on February 23, calling it a special operation to demilitarize and “denazify” its neighbor and protect the newly recognized Donbass republics. Ukraine has accused Russia of unprovoked invasion and received support from the West in the form of moral condemnations, sanctions against Russia, and weapons.
