The Prime Minister of Georgia invited “sincere citizens” for a “public or private discussion” on Georgia’s European Union integration issues, amid ongoing protests.

“We invite any sincere person who has understood what we said differently to come and hold a public or private discussion on any issue. Every citizen is precious to us, and we will pay special attention to the opinions of sincere people.

There is a serious problem with reading comprehension in Georgia. When an ordinary person cannot understand what they read or hear, this may be a lesser problem, but when they have difficulty understanding what they read, for example, specific public servants or teachers in schools or higher educational institutions, this is, of course, an even greater problem”, - said Irakli Kobakhidze.

Explaining Georgia’s EU integration delays, he criticized what he called the “use of the negotiations as a tool of “blackmail”: “Opening of accession talks cannot be constantly used as a tool of blackmail, just as the candidate status was used as a tool of blackmail for a year and a half. Put it on the table and we will sign it, but once again, there needs to be business instead of blackmail”.