US Secretary of State Blinken on Georgia: 'We are prepared to use available tools, including sanctions'
US State Secretary condemns Georgian Dream
American journalist Alex Raufoglu published comments from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, stating that, in addition to the previously announced review of US-Georgia bilateral relations, the United States is prepared to use the tools at its disposal, including additional sanctions.
“The United States strongly condemns the Georgian Dream party’s brutal and unjustified violence against Georgian citizens, protesters, members of the media, and opposition figures.
We call on Georgian Dream to cease its repressive tactics, including its use of arbitrary detention and physical violence, to attempt to silence its critics.”
According to him, those detained for exercising their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression must be immediately released, and those responsible for the unlawful use of force must be held fully accountable.
“The United States stands in solidarity with the Georgian people and their democratic aspirations. Those who undermine democratic processes or institutions in Georgia – including those who suppress Georgian citizens’ right to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression – will be held to account.”
Earlier, the chairman of the US Helsinki Commission, Joe Wilson, commented on the current political events in Georgia, calling on the State Department and European allies to impose personal sanctions on the Mayor of Tbilisi, the Georgian Minister of Internal Affairs, and “all those responsible for orchestrating the repression.”
