Georgian Dream Refuses to Attend Euronest Session in Yerevan
The Georgian Dream Parliament’s delegation refused to participate in the 12th Ordinary Session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly in Yerevan on October 28-30, citing what it said are “hostile rhetoric and actions” of certain MEPs, and the invitation of Georgia’s civil society representatives, among others.
The Euronest PA is a forum that promotes political association and economic integration between the European Union and its Eastern European partners. It brings together delegations from the European Parliament and from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. The European Parliament holds 60 seats in the assembly, while each partner country is represented by 10 members.
In an open letter to the Co-Presidents of the Euronest PA and the members of its Bureau, Levan Makhashvili, the chair of the Georgian Dream Parliament’s European Integration Committee and head of the parliamentary delegation to the Euronest PA, explained why Tbilisi boycotts the Yerevan session.
Makhashvili said the Assembly’s recent trajectory “raises serious concerns regarding its adherence to its foundational principles and objectives,” claiming that genuine multilateral dialogue is now a “distant history.”
“We are increasingly concerned by the conduct of certain Members of the European Parliament involved in the work of the Euronest PA, as well as the European Parliament as a whole, whose hostile rhetoric and actions contradict the principles of partnership and mutual respect that this platform is meant to uphold,” the letter continued.
“Intentionally distorted and false political statements have increasingly become a common characteristic of MEPs who prefer their political affiliates in Georgia, charged in criminal offences, over facts and evidence, and more importantly, over the will of the Georgian people,” Makhashvili added.
Accusing the MEPs of “exceeding the frames of parliamentary diplomacy” by joining protest rallies in Tbilisi, Makhashvili further claimed that “certain” MEPs encouraged “public unrest, radicalisation and violence” in Georgia through their public statements and social media posts, “whereas resolutions and reports of EP and Euronest PA on Georgia continue to disregard the democratic will of the Georgian people.”
“We are also deeply concerned by the decision to extend Euronest PA invitations to a number of individuals, labeled as ‘civil society,’ despite the fact that they have been involved in, or supportive of, actions aimed at rejecting elections, undermining legitimate democratic institutions and contributing to recent attempted overthrow of government in Georgia,” Makhashvili further wrote, claiming that the Assembly grants legitimacy to actors “whose agendas are inconsistent with democratic principles,” and thus it “normalises and even encourages anti-democratic behaviour.”
The open letter concludes that the Georgian parliamentary delegation will not attend the Euronest, “strongly urging” its leadership to “reflect on these concerns and to recommit to the Assembly’s founding principles.”
Polish MEP Krzysztof Brejza, reacting to Makhashvili’s letter, wrote on X that Georgian Dream’s absence came as “no surprise.”
“When your 2024 ‘elections’ are rigged and your legitimacy questioned across Europe, empty chairs are the easier way,” he wrote, dismissing Makhashvili’s claims about MEPs’ “hostility,” adding, “In truth, it’s their own hostility to democracy and Europe that isolates them.”
The Georgian Dream’s boycott of the Euronest PA comes amid deteriorating relations between Tbilisi and Brussels. The ruling party has increasingly accused the West, including what it calls the “European bureaucracy,” as well as EU institutions it claims are influenced by a “deep state,” and the bloc’s ambassadors in Georgia, of meddling in the country’s domestic affairs.
Also Read:
- 08/10/2025 – Kobakhidze Accuses West of ‘Indirectly’ Backing ‘Overthrow and Violence’ After October 4 Unrest
- 21/03/2024 – Controversy Ensues as EuroNest Falls Short on Georgia Support
- 22/02/2023 – Euronest Parliamentary Assembly adopts a resolution on “Support for the accession of Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova to the European Union”
- 23/02/2022 – Georgian MPs Visit Armenia for Euronest PA Meetings
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