I really do not know how to answer Saakashvili’s party, the National Movement, that just made comments here, these destructive, irresponsible people repeating lies, deception, and anti-state statements, and doing everything somehow to undermine our country, our European prospects.

New details and facts: They proudly repeated and quoted an article from French Le Figaro, passing it off as some kind of catastrophe. I want to tell our citizens and our dear MPs that, in reality, it is yet another dirty anti-state article, and this article has been commissioned by Mister Raphaël Glucksmann. You all know very well who Raphaël Glucksmann is. He used to be Mikheil Saakashvili’s adviser back when Saakashvili killed people, murdered and raped, and tortured, and actually presented the country as an outright mafia state. This person, Glucksmann, is a Member of the European Parliament today. He was actively involved in defining the policy of the then authorities. The author of said article is Ms. Isabelle Lasserre, Mr. Glucksmann’s friend. Consequently, this article was commissioned by Glucksmann. This exposes another of your anti-state actions.

I would like to tell Ms. Samadashvili—who is impolite enough to have left without hearing an answer to her questions—that no 20-point or 5-point letter has been handed to us. There was another question here, suggesting that Mister Ivanishvili is against it, and he is the main obstacle on the country’s path toward EU integration. I want to remind everyone: Without Mister Ivanishvili’s and our coming to power, our country would not have a chance at EU integration—in fact, we would not have a country at all. I have the right to say this because of your inconceivable anti-state policy pursued by you back when you were in power. Under Saakashvili, you lost territories, brought back Russian troops. After the war, you not only failed to consider and work on sanctions, but even adopted visa-free travel for Russian citizens and sold strategic sites to Russian state companies. And now you come here and teach us, tell us to enforce economic sanctions on Russia. Let me ask you something. Do you realize the responsibility the introduction of these sanctions entails? Will sanctions apply to one million people living in Russia? To 4 million of our compatriots presently living in the country? The admission we heard today from you and many of your party members—that you demand armament to be handed over to Ukraine, launching charter flights, handing over the Su-25’s recently rehabilitated by us—all this fits in the larger policy called engaging the country in war.

Unfortunately, we also heard another acknowledgement by Ukraine’s authorities. Let me remind all of you, and address our citizens, explaining what is happening in reality, and what is the reason behind all this hype. The Chairperson of Ukraine’s Security Council, an ordinary person, said that they would like to see a second front in Georgia and Moldova. He said it in a speech, that only their women and children should not die, but a second front must open in Georgia and Moldova. And now I am addressing you as Georgian citizens. Don’t you have a sense of protest, some similar basic emotion, or something of this kind, because apparently you are continuing the same thing? Let me remind you something else. There is one Arestovych. If I am not mistaken, he said that this government is not a government of war, and then cited an example, saying that, if Saakashvili were in power today, he would have started a war against Russia, but the present government would not engage in war with Russia. This, in essence, is another admission. And I have not heard anything, no reaction, no protest, from you. You’d better make up your minds about whom you serve, Georgia or some other state or states. Have you ever considered this at all? This is the key question, and everyone must answer it.

We just heard another dirty slander against our government. Two statements by Ukraine’s Intelligence Service have been circulating, with no evidence, no facts disclosed. As you know, we addressed them, called them, contacted them, asking why they did it. Then they said that Georgia was helping sanctioned companies, Russian companies and individuals, in bypassing sanctions. But they provided no facts or arguments. We contacted them and demanded evidence. We summoned the ambassador’s representative, but have received no evidence so far. What does it mean? Where is your reaction, patriot MPs? Where is your protection of national interests? Why are you silent about it? This is a dedicated anti-Georgian, anti-state policy.

Ms. Salome Samadashvili spoke a lot and then left. I was told straightforwardly. She is named personally—I intentionally avoided mentioning it a few days ago, and there are others too whom I will not list here—those going around gossiping, and just like they have Glucksmann on a payroll, and he is an MEP, I was told in European Parliament that this and other persons are intentionally undermining Georgia. This is animosity, and none of you has a sense of protest.

Ms. Natsvlishvili—I do not even know how to address you—says without any evidence, any fact, and proof, that there is a black hole. I do not even know how to respond to you. You either cannot understand or refuse to understand. Just check your brain, maybe there are real problems in your brain. I have no idea how to answer that.

As the country anticipates the most important decision from the EU—especially now that there is no consensus within the EU, and we are waiting to see whether or not they will grant us a candidate country status—these people, those like her, wannabe patriots, spread statements to make sure there is a headline reading that there are black holes in Georgia. This is animosity, betrayal of our country’s national interests. You all, you do not serve our country’s interests. If you really wanted an EU status for our country, you would have acted differently.

Do you know what the problem is? You know that you are a bankrupt opposition. In reality, you have nothing. The only leverage they had was somehow to involve our country in this war. And they could not do that either. They smuggled in their main contraband, Saakashvili, who really wanted to start a war, a revolution, and our country’s destabilization. But they failed. And you will always fail. This leads to the question of why Mister Saakashvili entered Georgia. For one and only reason, friends: somehow to instigate destabilization. I have said before that an invasion of Ukraine was planned for November-December, and there was an actual plan to destabilize the country here and start a war. I am asking you, if any of you have a shred of reason left, how can anyone consider starting a revolution in an occupied country? Does it not mean the direct destabilization of our country as a whole? All it takes is a basic provocation, and it is very easy to instigate a provocation to start another war. Do you realize that? Once again, I am asking you. The disasters we have been through since the 1990s, two wars with Russia in Abkhazia and Ossetia, and then a civil war, and now this senseless war in 2008—who is responsible for all this? We the government, those in charge, people who govern and decide people’s fate.

At the end of the day, the rallies organized by these people—and today they talk about allegedly not joining the sanctions, and delivering weapons and charter flights, all this is tied to one goal of somehow starting a war in Georgia. Had it not been for our government, we would have had a second Mariupol here. And, of course, all these people would have been responsible for it. But rest assured that you will have to answer the main question of whom you serve, Georgia or another state.