Slovakia’s prime minister wounded in shooting: reports
The prime minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, has been taken to hospital following a shooting incident, local media reported.
Key events
DennÃk N writes that one of its reporters did not see the incident itself but heard several shots and then saw the prime minister being lifted from the ground by security guards and put into a car.
Slovakia’s prime minister wounded in shooting: reports
The prime minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, has been taken to hospital following a shooting incident, local media reported.
A decision by the EU to start accession talks is likely to be indefinitely postponed if the foreign agents law comes into force, three EU officials told the Financial Times.
âWe have been very clearâ.â.â. this is a showstopper,â said a person briefed on the discussions between Georgian and EU officials.
Lithuaniaâs foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, stressed that the group of visiting ministers âexpressed extremely strong viewsâ rather than just some concerns.
In response to confusion about the meeting with the Chair of the Parliament of Georgia @shpapuashvili, I feel the need to clarify that we did not agree that Georgia was right to ignore European advice and values, and we expressed extremely strong views, not “some concerns”. pic.twitter.com/keuj60Xsxx
— Gabrielius Landsbergisð±ð¹ (@GLandsbergis) May 15, 2024
Hereâs a map of events in Tbilisi.
Belgium âstrongly regretsâ the adoption of Georgiaâs foreign influence law, the countryâs foreign minister has said.
Belgium strongly regrets the adoption by the Georgian Parliament of the law on âforeign influenceâ, which distances the country from European values.
Statement ð§ðªâ¬ï¸ pic.twitter.com/f5qFAmih4I
— Hadja Lahbib (@hadjalahbib) May 15, 2024
It appears that Olivér Várhelyiâs name has been removed from the European Commission statement on Georgia.
Várhelyi, a former Hungarian ambassador, serves as European commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement. He was nominated for the post by the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán.
Orbán recently met in Budapest with Georgiaâs prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze.
Hungary, backed by Slovakia, has blocked a statement from the EUâs 27 member states condemning Georgiaâs foreign agents law.
The updated statementâs title reads: âStatement by High Representative Josep Borrell with the European Commission on the adoption of the âtransparency of foreign influenceâ law in Georgia.â
Hereâs footage of recent protests in Georgia.
Salome Zourabichvili, Georgiaâs president, said she spoke with Ukraineâs Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Spoke with President @ZelenskyyUa
I thanked the President for his solidarity and unwavering support for the Georgian people.
Our joint future lies in Europe!
ð¬ðªðºð¦ðªðº
— Salome Zourabichvili (@Zourabichvili_S) May 15, 2024
‘We urge the Georgian authorities to withdraw the law,’ Borrell and Várhelyi say
After a delay, the EUâs foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, and the neighborhood commissioner, Olivér Várhelyi, issued a statement on Georgia.
âThe EU stands with the Georgian people and their choice in favour of democracy and of Georgiaâs European future. The intimidation, threats and physical assaults on civil society representatives, political leaders and journalists, as well as their families is unacceptable,â they said.
âThe European Council granted Georgia the status of a candidate country on the understanding that the relevant 9 steps set out in the Commission recommendation of 8 November 2023 are taken. These steps require human rights to be protected and civil society as well as media to be able to operate freely. They also refer to the need for depolarisation and the fight against disinformation,â they added.
Borrell and Várhelyi also noted that âthe EU has clearly and repeatedly stated that the spirit and content of the law are not in line with EU core norms and values.â
They added:
The adoption of this law negatively impacts Georgiaâs progress on the EU path. The choice on the way forward is in Georgiaâs hands. We urge the Georgian authorities to withdraw the law, uphold their commitment to the EU path and advance the necessary reforms detailed in the 9 steps.
‘Very disappointed’: Council of Europe says concerns ignored
The Council of Europeâs secretary general, Marija PejÄinoviÄ BuriÄ, said today that âthe adoption at third reading of the draft law âon transparency of foreign influenceâ by the Parliament of Georgia, without waiting for the opinion of the Venice Commission, is very disappointing and does not reflect the spirit of constructive dialogue.â
âRegrettably, international partnersâ concerns regarding the draft lawâs incompatibility with European democratic and human rights standards were ignored, while the lack of genuine parliamentary deliberations is not in accordance with an inclusive democratic process,â she said.
![Daniel Boffey](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/06/Daniel-Boffey,-L.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=82b5c74306cbaf723065d9f0d13b419a)
Daniel Boffey
Georgia has been warned by the US not to become an adversary of the west by falling back in line with Moscow, as its parliament defied mass street protests to pass a âKremlin-inspiredâ law.
Washingtonâs assistant secretary of state, Jim OâBrien, spoke of his fears that the passing by Georgiaâs parliament of a âforeign agentsâ bill on Tuesday could be yet another âturning pointâ in the former Soviet stateâs troubled history.
In comments that appeared to signal a conviction in the US that the Georgian government was once again aligning with Russia, OâBrien suggested funding could soon be pulled.
Billions of dollars had been spent by the US on rebuilding Georgia after the fall of the Soviet Union and hundreds of millions more were planned for the countryâs economy and military, he said.
âAll that has to be under review if we are now regarded as an adversary and not a partner,â OâBrien told reporters at a press conference in Tbilisi.
Nato says Georgian law ‘step in the wrong direction’
Natoâs spokesperson said today that âthe Georgian governmentâs decision to pass legislation on so-called âforeign agentsâ is a step in the wrong direction and takes Georgia further away from European and Euro-Atlantic integration.â
âWe urge Georgia to change course and to respect the right to peaceful protest,â she added.
The Georgian governmentâs decision to pass legislation on so-called âforeign agentsâ is a step in the wrong direction and takes Georgia ð¬ðª further away from European and Euro-Atlantic integration. We urge #Georgia to change course and to respect the right to peaceful protest.
— NATO Spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah (@NATOpress) May 15, 2024
Georgiaâs ombudsman said that representatives of the public defender visited 16 people detained overnight.
Lithuanian minister warns Georgia’s government of ‘risks’ of continuing on ‘dangerous course’
âWe came to Georgia as your closest friends, friends who care about Georgia and its people, who care about Georgiaâs European future,â Lithuaniaâs foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said in Tbilisi.
Speaking alongside ministers from Estonia, Latvia and Iceland, as well as Georgiaâs president, Landsbergis spoke of âcompletely unacceptable use of force against the protestersâ as well as âorchestrated intimidation campaign against non-governmental organisations and activistsâ and âremarkable resilienceâ shown by Georgians.
He added:
The first objective of us coming here thus is to express our support and solidarity with everyone who fights for Georgiaâs democratic and European choice, for Georgiaâs European future. This future belongs to Georgian people, and it should not be captured by anyone.
Our second objective is to pass a very clear message to the representatives of the ruling party, both in the parliament and in the government, of the risks and severe consequences Georgia will be facing if they continue on this very dangerous course.
‘How to save Georgia’: president holds talks with European ministers
Georgiaâs president, Salome Zourabichvili, a critic of the government, spoke today alongside visiting foreign ministers from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Iceland, who travelled to Tbilisi to show support for Georgians calling for a pro-European, democratic future for their country.
âThis society indeed stands on the values which are European values: democracy, freedom,â Zourabichvili said, stressing that Georgia has always fought for independence and âwill never go back to the Russian hands.â
âOn the agenda today is the following issue: how to save Georgia,â she added.
Joint Statements ð¬ðªð±ð»ð±ð¹ðªðªð®ð¸
https://t.co/5770Edewmh— Salome Zourabichvili (@Zourabichvili_S) May 15, 2024
European politicians show solidarity in Tbilisi
Amid ongoing protests and a government crackdown, a group of senior European politicians are visiting Georgia to express their support for demonstrators.
Michael Roth, chair of the Bundestagâs foreign affairs committee, was among those attending a protest in Tbilisi last night. He described it as âone of the most moving moments of my political life.â
One of the most moving moments of my political life.
Tonight we are all Georgians!
ð¬ðªðªðºð«¶ðð¾ https://t.co/O1Rv8JPlv9
— Michael Roth – official ðªðºðºð¦ð®ð±ð¬ðª (@MiRo_SPD) May 14, 2024
Welcome to the blog
Good morning and welcome back to the Europe blog.
Send tips and comments to lili.bayer@theguardian.com.