00:00And I'm very pleased to welcome the president of Georgia,
00:04Salome Zobishvili, who finds herself increasingly at odds
00:10with the governing party.
00:11Welcome to DW, Madam President.
00:13Thank you so much for your time today.
00:15With so many people in Georgia opposed to this bill,
00:18do you think it will become law
00:21or do you see something happening to stop it?
00:23I mean, you yourself have vowed to veto the law, I believe.
00:27Yes, I will veto this law as I vetoed all the laws
00:33that have been taken by the government in the recent period
00:37and that are going against the letter and the spirit
00:41of the recommendations that were offered
00:44by the European Union to open,
00:47to pave the way for the opening of negotiations.
00:50But it's now very clear that this law,
00:53which is a Russian law by essence,
00:57because it's the way Russia has managed
01:00to really repress the civil society
01:04that the government here is trying,
01:07trying to present the partners of Georgia
01:11as agents of revolution,
01:15as those that are trying to overthrow the government
01:19and keeping very silent on Russia
01:22as if it was now today our new friend.
01:25So that is becoming increasingly clear
01:28that it's not only the Russian law that is the problem.
01:31The problem is a Russian government
01:35or a government that is prone to making concessions
01:38to Russia and to turn the orientation
01:41of this country towards Russia.
01:43And that is what the vast majority
01:46of this country is protesting.
01:49It's not only the law is a symbol,
01:52but the reality is that the country is saying,
01:55we want Europe, we want our European future,
01:59which is close at hand.
02:00We're going to defend it as well as our independence.
02:04We're not going to give in.
02:05They're also saying to our partners
02:09that here is at stake not only the future of Georgia,
02:13but in a way the future of Europe and of its strengths.
02:17Madam President, can I ask you,
02:18the government tried to pass similar legislation last year.
02:22Help us understand why the ruling Georgian Trim party
02:26wants this law so much.
02:31I don't know.
02:32What is clear is that they have lied to us,
02:34to the Georgian population,
02:35and they have lied to our partners.
02:37They have said that they were withdrawing the law
02:39and that they would not represent it.
02:42Now they are lying on all of that.
02:45They have disappointed and deceived their own population.
02:49Why they're doing it, it doesn't make any sense.
02:52In political terms, it's no longer
02:55what could have been said earlier
02:57that they are trying to save their power.
02:59Today, it doesn't make any sense, but to please Moscow.
03:04And the one center, we cannot accept
03:07that Georgia became a candidate to the European Union
03:12that sees very close at hand the negotiations of adhesion,
03:17that sees that the Caucasus is no longer
03:21this garden that was preserved for Russia.
03:25That's what displeases Moscow
03:27and displeases those that are now clearly,
03:30since the speech of Mr. Ivanishvili,
03:33appearing as serving Moscow.
03:36You've said yourself that the vast majority of Georgians
03:38want their country to move closer to the West
03:41and to join the EU.
03:43How will people react?
03:45How angry will people be
03:47if this bill comes ever closer to passing?
03:49What's gonna happen?
03:52Well, they're very angry,
03:54but they're at the same time very reasonable.
03:57You see this youth that is protesting completely peacefully
04:01and will continue to do so
04:03because they're very aware of the risks
04:06that exist in a country that has its territories
04:1020% occupied by Russia.
04:12But at the same time,
04:13they will not give in either independence
04:17or their European future.
04:19This country has been fighting for 26 century
04:22for its independence.
04:24And that's how this country has survived until now.
04:27This country has always shared the values
04:30that are now called European
04:32and will defend that.
04:34And this country has always fought for its freedom.
04:38And I want to use this opportunity
04:41to thank the declarations that have been,
04:43the statements that have been made on the German side,
04:47and especially the president of the Foreign Affairs Committee
04:51of the Bundestag and many others.
04:54And we know that Germany, as all our European partners,
04:58are on the side of Georgia and of European Georgia.
05:02So you couldn't envisage, for example,
05:04a possible compromise,
05:06something that might satisfy the protesters on the streets
05:09as well as the ruling party?
05:13I don't think it exists
05:15because the compromise was the withdrawal of the law.
05:17It happened once.
05:19And again, they have reintroduced it.
05:21And in the meanwhile,
05:23they have adopted another half a dozen laws,
05:26including one that makes Georgia
05:28an offshore for Russian oligarchs that are sanctioned.
05:34So all of that is extremely preoccupying.
05:36And I think that our European partners
05:39should take the right measure of what is happening here
05:43and see that today and until the election
05:46on this very tricky road,
05:48very sensitive road towards elections,
05:50where the Georgian people will be able to say
05:53what they have to say in favor of Europe.
05:55We need attention and support of our European partners.
05:5910 years ago, Madam President,
06:01the Ukrainian government wanted closer ties with Moscow,
06:03but people there took to the streets in protest.
06:06That was known as the Maidan Revolution.
06:08Is this a similar moment for your country?
06:13Oh, I don't know if it's similar.
06:14We have gone already through everything
06:16that Ukraine has gone through.
06:18We have gone through Maidans.
06:20We've gone through wars.
06:23So we are, yes, there is a parallelism
06:26between all of what has happening in Ukraine
06:28over the past decades and recently and Georgia,
06:32but with all our individual paths
06:34and our paths this time leads towards these elections
06:38in October, which will be a type of referendum.
06:41Do we want Europe or do we want Russia?
06:44And I'm confident of what is the answer of Georgia.
06:50Salome Zobishvili, the President of Georgia,
06:53many thanks for your time.
06:55And thank you for speaking to DW.
06:58Thank you.
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