EU Delegation Member Denied Entry at Georgia’s Border
A member of the European Union Delegation to Georgia was denied entry at Tbilisi International Airport on May 21, the EU Delegation confirmed with Civil.ge.
Simon Vanderbroucke, the delegation’s enlargement program officer, was the diplomat who was turned away at the border, according to earlier reports in the local media before the EU Delegation confirmed the incident.
“The denial of entry to a duly accredited member of the EU Delegation contravenes the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and other applicable norms, which Georgia is bound to respect,” the EU Delegation said.
“A Note Verbale has been addressed to the Georgian MFA on this matter. The Georgian authorities have presented oral apologies for the regrettable incident and confirmed that the staff member is welcome to come back to his place of posting.”
This incident follows a pattern of entry denials involving activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and politicians. However, this is the first reported case involving an EU diplomat, and it comes amid the Georgian Dream government’s increasing criticism of and targeting of Western diplomats.
Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandre Darakhvelidze of the ruling Georgian Dream party claimed that the entry denial was due to a “technical problem” and insisted that the incident was “unintentional.”
“This was not intentional. It was a mistake, and we clarified [with the EU Delegation] that this individual can enter Georgia and enjoy the diplomatic privileges designated by the Vienna Convention and other relevant legal norms. Therefore, the incident is over, and I don’t think it’s worth discussing further,” he told reporters, declining to elaborate on the details.
NOTE: This news article was updated at 3:23 p.m. on May 23 to include Aleksandre Darakhvelidze’s comment.
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