German Embassy Releases Translation of Scholz's Statement Amid PM's Claims
By Liza Mchedlidze
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
On April 12, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze alleged that during the press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the translator distorted Scholz's remarks on the draft law. Kobakhidze also highlighted that the translator "openly affiliates with one of the radical opposition parties."
Following this, the German Embassy in Georgia released the Georgian translation of a statement by the German Chancellor during a press conference with Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze in Berlin on April 12.
In the statement, the Chancellor emphasized the European Union's collective criticism of the law on foreign influence organizations. They reiterated their opposition to adopting the 'Foreign Agents' law in its current form and urged consideration of critical feedback.
"I want to reiterate: we, along with the entire European Union, were critical of the law on foreign influence organizations, and when it was suspended, we had high hopes that it would not be discussed again. This time, there is a new legislative initiative that goes in the same direction. Our criticism, like in the previous period, remains the same, and we hope that this law will not be adopted in such a form and that critical statements will be taken into account [...]
The EU does not have such regulation. There is discussion about adopting measures to provide transparency in certain areas, but that's a different regulation and concept from what we're discussing here. In the European Union, they have not adopted it, and probably will not adopt it. There was a certain regulation in Hungary, which was annulled by the European Court," the statement reads.
