Opinion: 'Georgian government devoted long statement to events in Venezuela without even mentioning US'
Georgian Dream’s statement on Maduro – opinion
Political analyst David Zurabishvili commented on a statement by Shalva Papuashvili, the speaker of the Georgian Dream parliamentary faction, in which he said that the “European Union no longer exists as a guarantor of international order or as a global geopolitical player.”
On 3 January 2026, US President Donald Trump announced that, following an air strike on Caracas, American military and law enforcement personnel had detained Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
According to Zurabishvili, Papuashvili’s comments on the events in Venezuela suggest that Georgian Dream is, at least to some extent, concerned about the Maduro precedent but is trying to maintain a stance of silence.
David Zurabishvili:
“At last, we have an official comment from the Georgian government on the US special operation in Venezuela. This honorable task was assigned to the main promoter of anti-European messages, parliament speaker Papuashvili.
Since I do not, in principle, share anti-European propaganda, I am deliberately refraining from quoting Papuashvili’s text and will limit myself to commentary. <…>
So, what did we learn from Mr Papuashvili?
1. ‘Anyone who does not recognize Georgia’s territorial integrity cannot be a friend of Georgia.’
Following Russia, Venezuela has recognized the self-proclaimed Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. Georgia and the overwhelming majority of the world consider these regions part of Georgia – JAMnews.
TIn principle, this reflects Georgia’s attitude toward the Maduro regime. This approach is correct in itself, although it is not explained in the text. However, Russia is also among the countries (that do not recognize Georgia’s territorial integrity), and this certainly deserves attention.
2. ‘We must be guided by the interests of our state.’
Yes, no one disputes that, but the problem is deciding what counts as the state’s interests. When Papuashvili says ‘country’ or ‘state,’ he is actually referring to Bidzina Ivanishvili (oligarch, billionaire, widely regarded as Georgia’s shadow ruler).
3. ‘In the new world order, the European Union decides nothing and has no say. Brussels’ policy towards Georgia is hostile because we are guided by national interests and are not puppets of European bureaucracy, like Ukraine.’”
Essentially, this is the main point: the Georgian government intends to continue its confrontational policy towards Europe. The European Union is declared the primary enemy and threat.
To me, this is less about malice than about a combination of stupidity and ignorance, but in any case, it is harmful and amounts to a betrayal of national interests.
If the EU really decides nothing in today’s world, such overt anti-European rhetoric from the Georgian Dream government is puzzling from the standpoint of political pragmatism.
But on a purely human level, it’s understandable – they simply attack what conflicts with their values.
4. Papuashvili described the government’s opponents as “stateless, corrupt Georgians.”
Attempting to dehumanise opponents when a significant portion of the population (in my view, even the majority) holds a negative view of the government is politically misguided. Any government in this situation would start maneuvering and seeking compromises, but here we again see stupidity combined with ignorance, as the Dream government tries to convince us that its opponent is just thirty bad actors funded by European bureaucracy.
Finally, I am personally struck by the fact that the government devoted a fairly long statement to news from Venezuela without even mentioning the United States. Shouldn’t they have done so? On the other hand, it also suggests that they are at least somewhat concerned about the Maduro precedent, yet are trying to maintain silence.
P.S. By the way, the “deep state” is not mentioned even once.
Georgian Dream’s statement on Maduro – opinion
