KIEV (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th July, 2020) The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on Friday expressed appreciation of its cooperation with Georgia, stressing that statements by unauthorized persons do not represent the official stance of Kiev, including a recent outburst about the current government in Tbilisi by former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili's, who now presides over the executive committee at the Ukrainian National Reform Council.
On Thursday, Saakashvili said he did not recognize the current Georgian government as legitimate and will be "at the forefront" of the general election scheduled in Georgia for late October. Tbilisi has already demanded explanations from Kiev and summoned Ukrainian Ambassador Ihor Dolhov.
"Ukraine highly appreciates the strategic partnership with Georgia and reiterates its readiness to develop bilateral relations in the spirit of friendship and neighborliness ... With that in mind, we note that the Ukrainian law clearly establishes the list of officials and governmental bodies with the authority to express the official position of the Ukrainian state. Public statements by unauthorized persons cannot be considered an official position of the state," the ministry said in a statement.
In 2013, Saakashvili left his native country of Georgia, where he is facing several criminal charges. In 2015, he was given Ukrainian citizenship and made the governor of the Odessa region by then-President Petro Poroshenko, only to be fired in 2016 and have his citizenship revoked in 2017.
On May 28, 2019, Ukraine reinstated Saakashvili's Ukrainian citizenship, prompting his return to the country the next day. The former president was later appointed as the head of the executive committee at the Ukrainian National Reform Council.
