Issued on:
Demonstrators gathered outside parliament waving Georgian, Ukrainian and EU flags in solidarity with Ukraine on the first anniversary of Russia's invasion (Photo: AFP/Vano SHLAMOV
Tbilisi (AFP) – Thousands rallied in Georgia on Friday in
solidarity with Ukraine on the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of the
fellow ex-Soviet nation and in support of Tbilisi's European Union membership.
Some 30,000 demonstrators gathered outside
parliament waving Georgian, Ukrainian and EU flags, according to an estimate by
an AFP reporter.
The rally was organised by several opposition
parties and Georgia-based Ukrainian activists.
Crowds chanted "Glory to Ukraine!"
after Georgian and Ukrainian anthems were performed at the demonstration.
"We, citizens of Georgia, political
parties, civil society and Ukrainians living here unite today in solidarity
with the heroic Ukrainian people," the organisers said in a statement.
Addressing the rally by video link from the
Ukrainian capital, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko thanked Georgians for their
support.
"We defend today Europe and its
values," he said to applause from the crowd, adding he was certain both
Ukraine and Georgia would become "EU members".
"Ukraine's victory is also a victory for
Georgia and the whole civilised World. Ukrainians are today shedding their
blood for all of us," one of the demonstrators, 20-year-old student Rati
Gotua, told AFP.
Another demonstrator, agronomist Ani Shotadze,
54, said: "The future of Georgia and Ukraine is within the EU and Russia
will have to forget its imperial dreams."
'No room for diplomatic
relations'
The rally was held amid growing discontent over
what critics say is the Georgian government's backsliding on democracy which
undermines the Black Sea nation's EU bid.
In a statement on Friday, Georgian Prime
Minister Irakli Garibashvili said: "The war, which Russia has begun, is
totally unacceptable and from its very first day Georgian people stand with the
people of Ukraine."
But his government has faced strong criticism
from civil activists and the opposition for allegedly cultivating
anti-Ukrainian sentiment and derailing Georgia from its pro-Western path.
Garibashvili has defended his
"balanced" Russia policy as aimed at ensuring "peace and
stability".
He has accused the opposition and "some
forces in Kyiv and in the West" of trying to "drag Georgia into the
war."
Georgia's figurehead President Salome
Zurabishvili on Friday expressed regret that the Georgian government was
"trying to justify its supposedly 'neutral and balanced position.'"
Earlier this week, ruling Georgian Dream party's
MP Irakli Zarkua said the party's parliamentary faction has turned down an
invitation from Kyiv to visit Ukraine on the anniversary of the Russian
invasion.
"When high-ranking officials of Ukraine
call our state to open a second front... I think that this leaves no room for
diplomatic relations," he told journalists.
Officials in Kyiv and in the United States have
repeatedly rejected as false such claims by Georgia's ruling party leaders.
In May, Kyiv recalled its ambassador from
Georgia after Tbilisi refused to let a group of volunteer fighters and medics
travel to Ukraine.
Last year, the EU deferred Tbilisi's membership
application -- while granting candidacy to Ukraine and Moldova -- saying
Tbilisi must improve its democratic record before it is put on a formal
membership path.
© 2023 AFP
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230224-thousands-rally-in-georgia-for-ukraine-eu
No comments:
Post a Comment