Foreign Ministry summons Norwegian ambassador in connection with award to Mikheil Saakashvili

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia held a meeting with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Norway to Georgia, Helene Sand Andersen, regarding the presentation of the award by the Conservative Party of Norway to Mikheil Saakashvili for the promotion of human rights and the comment made by the Norwegian ambassador in this regard.

It was explained to the ambassador by the Georgian Foreign Ministry that the Georgian side is negative about the above-mentioned fact related to human rights violations and abuses of power by the government during Mikhail Saakashvili's rule, for which Mikhail Saakashvili and many members of his government were convicted or have already served their sentences.

As the agency notes, the mentioned step of the conservative party of Norway does not contribute to the depolarization in the Georgian society and is offensive to the citizens and their families, who became the victims of criminal acts, committed during the rule of Saakashvili. As the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway noted during the meeting, giving an award to Mikheil Saakashvili does not reflect the position of the Norwegian Government, but it is the initiative of a specific political party. At the meeting the sides reaffirmed friendly relations between Georgia and the Kingdom of Norway, and expressed readiness to promote cooperation between the countries in the future.

As a reminder, Mikhail Saakashvili was presented with the prestigious international award for his contribution to democracy and human rights on 25 March. The Norwegian politician's Sjur Lindebrekke Award is presented annually by the Norwegian Conservative Party to people or organisations that make a special contribution to the development of democratic values around the world. The award was presented to the mother and son of the third president, Nikoloz Saakashvili. The award presentation was followed by irritation of Georgian Dream and comparison of the third president with terrorist Andres Breivik. This was followed by a statement by the Norwegian ambassador to Georgia. In a written comment given to Mtavari Channel the diplomat said that she was surprised by the statement made by the government representatives.