US Assistant Secretary of State says Transparency of Foreign Influence bill based on Russian interests
“This is a law based on Russia’s interest, not Georgia’s interest,” said Todd D. Robinson, Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs at the US Department of State when remarking on the People’s Power-tabled Transparency of Foreign Influence bill.
“Obviously, this is a law based on Russia’s interest, not Georgia’s interest. And we think it’s in Georgia’s interest to work more closely towards Euro-Atlantic integration. This law doesn’t do that. We don’t think it’s the right thing for Georgia. More importantly, Georgians don’t think it’s the right thing for Georgia. And we will keep working with our partners in the government of Georgia to make sure that we’re working towards what is their priority, which is Euro-Atlantic integration,” he said.
Asked to comment about claims that “foreign agents” law is FARA copy-paste, Todd Robinson said:
“Look, I’m not going to get into the details of this law. What I know is that it’s not working for Georgia. It’s not working towards what Georgians want, which is Euro-Atlantic integration. We are helping, we are here to help Georgia towards its ambition, which is Euro-Atlantic integration, and that’s what we’re going to continue to do.”
Georgian Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee on Monday backed the People’s Power-tabled draft bills on Transparency of Foreign Influence and Registration of Foreign Agents in the first reading.
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Georgia: EU welcomes withdrawal of draft legislation on “foreign influence”
The EU Delegation to Georgia has welcomed today’s announcement by the Georgian ruling party ‘Georgian Dream” that it would withdraw the draft legislation on the “Transparency of foreign influence”.
“We encourage all political leaders in Georgia to resume pro-EU reforms, in an inclusive and constructive way and in line with the 12 priorities for Georgia to achieve candidate status,” the Delegation said on Twitter.
On 7 March, the bill passed its first reading in the Georgian parliament, despite widespread protests.
The EU said the law was incompatible with EU values and standards and goes against Georgia’s stated objective of joining the European Union, adding that this is “a very bad development for Georgia and its people”.
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On Tuesday, the Georgian Parliament adopted the new law on “transparency of foreign influence” in a first reading. This is a very bad development for Georgia and its people.
The law in its current form risks having a chilling effect on civil society and media organisations, with negative consequences for the many Georgians benefiting from their work. This law is incompatible with EU values and standards. It goes against Georgia’s stated objective of joining the European Union, as supported by a large majority of Georgian citizens. Its final adoption may have serious repercussions on our relations.
The European Union urges Georgia to uphold its commitment to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law and human rights, and recalls the right of people to a peaceful protest.
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The proposed draft law on “transparency of foreign influence” raises serious concerns. Creating and maintaining an enabling environment for civil society organisations and ensuring media freedom is at the core of democracy. It is also key to the EU accession process and part of the 12 priorities, notably priority 7 on media freedom and priority 10 on the involvement of civil society.
The European Union is supporting Georgia in its reform efforts, responding to the country’s own aspirations for continued development and EU membership, as enshrined in Georgia’s Constitution.
The draft law’s adoption would be inconsistent with these aspirations and with EU norms and values.
We encourage the political leaders in Georgia to adopt and implement reforms that are in line with the stated objective of joining the European Union, as supported by a large majority of Georgia’s citizens.
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The Speaker, H.E. Shalva Papuashvili held a meeting with the EU Ambassador and the Ambassadors of the EU Member States for deliberation on the Draft on Transparency of Foreign Influence, and the Act on Registration of Foreign Agents.
As the Speaker noted, at the meeting the concerns have been discussed that are expressed concerning the hereof Drafts.
“We have already discussed it and I understand that the concerns may exist, especially since these discussions are themselves stigmatized. The fact is that we have initiated an exact copy of the American Act and even the Law was titled not American but Russian. The discussion is becoming absurd and we understand that some forces try to stigmatize the discussion. Despite the immense wave of stigmatization, we have held long conversations about the importance of transparency, similar to our yesterday’s meeting with NGOs; we have achieved an understanding that transparency concerning the actors engaged in the formation and adoption of the political decisions is a request of our citizens and the Parliament is assigned to ensure the realization of this request. We discussed these needs, declaring that we intend to submit these Drafts to Venice Commission for its opinions; meanwhile, we have time plenty to hold other discussions”, - the Speaker stated and hoped that the civil society will actively cooperate with the Parliament instead of imposing stigmas and taboos, to eliminate the legal gaps related to insufficient transparency.
“I do hope that the civil society, instead of imposing taboo on the discussion concerning transparency, will demonstrate that they feel confident and powerful in this issue and that they are right and like they speak behind the closed doors, they consider that transparency is important and the degree of transparency we have today is not sufficient, and I hope they will get actively engaged in these issues and cooperate with the Parliament to ensure transparency and eliminate the gap in our system. All actors participating in the formation of the political decisions, state institutions, parties and public officials are transparent in their finances and the only actor – the non-governmental sector – is opaque in this regard, more precisely, such organizations manifest various types of transparency and this gap shall be eliminated”, - he added.
Administration of the Parliament
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The EU Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM), together with Europol, the OSCE, Frontex, UNODC, and law enforcement agencies from Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova last week convened a meeting of the Arms Working Group on fighting the trafficking of weapons, ammunition and explosives from Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova.
The online meeting focused on the assessment of threats related to arms trafficking in Europe, with a particular emphasis on the availability of weapons, as a consequence of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
Experts from international institutions and law enforcement agencies from Moldova and Ukraine presented the latest cases and trends in the detection of illegal weapons at border crossing posts and in the border area.
“The main objective of establishing this Group has been a consolidation of the knowledge, experiences, and efforts of Moldovan and Ukrainian law enforcement agencies as well as international actors to strengthen joint countermeasures against the trafficking of weapons, ammunition, explosives and CBRN materials,” saidSlawomir Pichor, Head of EUBAM.
The purpose of the joint cross-border working group is to assist Moldovan and Ukrainian authorities in effectively countering illicit weapons trafficking and related serious and organised crime in the region and to foster international cooperation.
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