Georgian parliament speaker refuses to meet with EU parliamentarians

TBILISI. Nov 11 (Interfax) - Georgian parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili has refused to meet with European parliamentarians visiting Tbilisi and has informed them about reasons for his decision in writing.

"This group of European deputies asked me for a meeting. I rejected the request and explained the reasons for my decision in writing," Papuashvili said on a social network on Monday.

According to him, the visiting EU parliamentarians "have repeatedly demonstrated their unfriendly attitude to Georgia."

"The unfriendly rhetoric and actions of certain members of the visiting delegation towards Georgia and its authorities, which we have been witnessing for the last two and a half years, are incompatible with the image of Europe as a peace project," Papuashvili said.

The delegation includes Chairman of the German Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs Michael Roth, who actively supports the Georgian opposition.

"We refrained from meeting with these people for one simple reason: some members of this delegation were directly involved in the Georgian election campaign, thereby grossly violating all electoral principles," Kobakhidze told journalists in Baku later, explaining the authorities' decision not to meet with the MEPs from eight EU countries.

Some members of the delegation visiting Tbilisi had been to Georgia in recent months and spoke at opposition rallies, Tbilisi Mayor and the ruling Georgian Dream party's Secretary General Kakha Kaladze told journalists earlier on Monday.

"Statements of these European MPs are worthless. They are loafers who go to one country, then another and speak on Europe's behalf, propagating utter lies," Kaladze said.