President Zourabichvili Responds to Kobakhidze's Call for Aligning Positions on the 'Foreign Agents' Law
By Liza Mchedlidze
Monday, May 13, 2024
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said that within the framework of the veto procedure, "positions may be reconciled" regarding the "Foreign Agents" law. He mentioned conversations with international partners on this matter.
"I see positive changes. Among them, after the recent meetings, I have the impression that there is now a readiness for discussion regarding the provisions of the law. I explained to our partners that it is possible to reconcile positions within the veto procedure. We know that Salome Zourabichvili does not write her own veto bills herself; they are either written by NGOs or from external sources. Therefore, we can leverage this again by using the veto procedure to reconcile our positions on this bill.
At this stage, our partners will essentially be compelled to present specific remarks and address the President's veto. As you know, when a veto is submitted to parliament, it must be formulated as a specific bill. There is already a compulsion to offer something specific. Until then, we are prepared to reconcile positions. We are absolutely open and ready for discussion from our side," Kobakhidze said.
President Salome Zourabichvili responded directly to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's remarks regarding her presidential veto.
Zourabichvili criticized the sudden discussion of her veto, particularly in light of past tensions where the Prime Minister publicly labeled her a traitor in front of her own army.
The President stated that she would issue a veto but will not engage in manipulations or games.
"As for the president's veto, they suddenly remembered the president and her veto - the same president whom the prime minister called a traitor in front of her own army.
They are telling the president, "Present a veto to us, write something in it. You don't write it yourself, others write it for you, either foreigners or NGOs. Present it to us, and then we might consider it."
I will definitely issue a veto, but I will not engage in any manipulations or start playing games. The sole purpose of this is to create confusion and chaos among the people. Do you want to change something in this law? It's up to you to either withdraw it or return it to parliament for a second reading and listen to the opposition, which I'm sure will offer you some comments and proposed changes," Zourabichvili said.
