Polish opposition leader pays official visit to Georgia

Poland’s opposition leader and former Prime Minister, Jaroslaw Kaczynski has begun his visit to Georgia.

Ahead of his visit to Georgia, Kaczynski, who currently leads Law and Justice (PiS), the largest opposition party in Poland, expressed some concerns he had with regards the latest political situation in Georgia. He particularly underlined the fact that after the October Parliamentary elections some of the former political leaders and state officials were detained.

Kaczynski shared his concerns with the members of the United National Movement (UNM). At the meeting with MPs from the UNM Polish-Georgian relations, the political situation in Georgia and problems with Russia were discussed.

“We discussed Georgia-Poland bilateral relations, all the major aspects of the situation in Georgia, as well as the ways we should act with support of Poland and other partners, to stop the Russian aggression,” MP Giorgi Baramidze commented after the meeting. According to Baramidze, Kaczynski also spoke about the possible existence of selective justice in the country. The MP said it is a troublesome fact, when partners start to talk about selective justice in Georgia.

Baramidze said that unfortunately, there is no adequate response from the government of Georgia about this. “Our guests mentioned that the application of selective justice and prosecution of political opponents continues. I consider that this is a serious problem for Georgia on the way to EU integration,” he said.

UNM MP Giorgi Kandelaki, who also participated in the meeting, said that some mistakes the Georgian government makes in the international policy were also discussed with Kaczynski.

“We spoke about how to return our country to the right track to democracy,” Kandelaki said.

In his interview with Rustavi 2, Kaczynski spoke about the conflict regions in Georgia and slammed Moscow for the installation of metal fences along the occupation line in the Tskhinvali region. The Polish leader is confident in the effectiveness of international levers and says the situation with Russia can and should be solved only in the frames of international norms. Kaczynski emphasized the importance of the EU and NATO membership for Georgia.

“Everything must be done in the frames of international norms. Expansion of the boundary line is unacceptable. Georgia`s way must be towards Europe, EU and NATO because the membership of these institutions will assist Georgia solve these problems. This is not an easy task, but we should say that Russia also has problems. Therefore, we hope that the countries like Georgia and Poland will have better times,” Kaczynski told Rustavi 2.

Kaczynski also visited Secretary General of the UNM, Vano Merabishvili in prison. Merabishvili is currently in preliminary detention. Kaczynski said that he doubts the events taking place in Georgia after the October elections can be qualified as democratic processes. Kaczynski expressed his hope that the Georgian government will not choose the wrong path for the country.

The Polish opposition leader expressed his full support to Merabishvili and criticized the Georgian government after the meeting with the UNM Secretary General.

Kaczynski also had a meeting with President Mikheil Saakashvili. The two held a joint press conference after the meeting. The President of Georgia awarded Kaczynski the country’s highest state distinction St. George’s Order of Victory.

Within the framework of his official visit, Kaczynski also held meetings with Prime Minster Bidzina Ivanishvili. The Georgian PM thanked Kaczynski for Poland’s support towards Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic aspirations, as well as the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.