The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia held a meeting with the Acting Ambassador of Poland to Georgia, Mariusz Piotr Zak, regarding the visit of Polish doctors to ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili and the alleged attempt to take a biological sample.
The Special Penitentiary Service claims that one of the Polish doctors who contacted Mikheil Saakashvili at the Vivamed clinic tried to smuggle the biosample in his shoes.
Polish doctors took hair and nail samples from Mikheil Saakashvili, says Vivamed Director Nino Nadiradze. Also, according to her, the Polish doctor gave a “nonsensical explanation” about the samples found in his shoes.
The Polish doctor did indeed take biosamples from Saakashvili’s cell, Georgian Justice Minister Rati Bregadze, said:
“We allowed Polish doctors [to visit Saakashvili] and also provided them with officially taken samples. However, later the doctor tried, in violation of all rules, to carry the samples taken from the convict in his shoe.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry expressed concern about the incident:
“The Polish diplomat was once again explained that the state is interested in the fact that the public has full information about the state of health of Mikheil Saakashvili. Accordingly, we have repeatedly expressed our readiness to admit foreign doctors to the clinic, as evidenced by the visit of Polish doctors to the convicted Saakashvili at the request of his family and with the support of the Polish Embassy, despite the fact that the convicted Saakashvili, by decision of the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights, was denied transfer to treatment in Poland.
The Georgian side emphasized that the behavior of one of the doctors who were part of the mission of Polish doctors “causes misunderstanding, concern, and also deprives confidence in the whole process.”
“The Polish diplomat was asked to state his position on the incident. He noted that he did not know what caused such behavior of the Polish doctor.”
● On July 3, Mikheil Saakashvili took part via video link in a court session where his case was considered. The photo taken from the courtroom shows how much the former president of Georgia has lost weight.
● On the same day, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky demanded that Mikheil Saakashvili be transferred to Ukraine for treatment.
● According to Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, after the video footage of Mikheil Saakashvili’s trial was published, the situation “has reached a boiling point”, so Kyiv has taken a sharp but “fair step”.
● Earlier, on June 16, Mikheil Saakashvili announced that he intended to actively participate in Georgian politics.
● Mikheil Saakashvili has been in prison since autumn 2021. He was arrested immediately after returning to Georgia on charges of illegally crossing the border.
● In prison, Saakashvili’s health deteriorated. Since May 2022, he has been kept in Tbilisi at the Vivamed clinic. More than 20 independent doctors say that Saakashvili is in serious condition.
● Saakashvili’s family members and lawyers requested a deferment or release of Saakashvili from punishment for health reasons and filed this petition with the court. However, Mikheil Saakashvili has not yet been sentenced.
● On May 12, 2023, the Strasbourg court refused to transfer Mikheil Saakashvili to Poland for treatment. But, according to Saakashvili’s lawyer, this is not a final decision, but only a “temporary measure.”
