Aggravation of Armenian-Georgian relations to have political and  economic consequences - opposition MP

ArmInfo. The worsening of Armenian-Georgian relations due to the irresponsible actions of the current government will have not only political but also economic consequences. This was stated by Garnik Danielyan, a member of parliament from the opposition Armenia faction, regarding the  Georgian side's reaction to the ruling Civil Contract party's  endorsement of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly resolution  questioning the legitimacy of the Georgian government.

As the opposition member noted, relations between the countries have  not been good neighborly recently, despite assurances from the  relevant authorities. He noted that joining this resolution has  already sparked discontent in Georgia and reiterated that the  development of trade and economic ties with Georgia is of strategic  importance for Armenia. "Transit cargo shipments to third countries  pass through Georgia. Of course, not everything is smooth here  either, and problems arise from time to time. One of the most recent  glaring examples is the obstruction of alcoholic beverage exports at  the Georgian border. These problems may have political overtones, but  the government is designed to resolve them using the levers at its  disposal," the opposition member noted.

However, he noted that instead, the current government is waging a  campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) and persecuting  opposition figures. Danielyan is confident that the ruling party in  Armenia is taking such steps deliberately and with the clear goal of  worsening relations with Georgia. "And naturally, these steps will  have consequences that will harm our economy, and businesses will  find themselves in a difficult situation," the MP concluded. Earlier,  Deputy Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Nino Tsilosani criticized  Armenian parliamentarians for supporting the Euronest Parliamentary  Assembly's resolution regarding Georgia.

As a reminder, Georgia and Azerbaijan refused to participate in the  12th plenary session of the Euronest Assembly, held in Yerevan. The  Georgian side explained that the refusal to participate was due to  "European parliamentarians joining protests in front of the Georgian  parliament building, statements by some members of the European  Parliament delegation to the Euronest Assembly encouraging public  unrest, radicalization, and violence. Furthermore, European  parliamentarians inviting individuals who participated in or  supported the rejection of the recognition of elections, the  undermining of legitimate democratic institutions, and recent  attempts to overthrow the government in Georgia to the plenary  session under the guise of 'civil society.'"