I was asked by the media to express my opinion and I expressed it honestly and openly, as I always do. Such a statement made the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, when answering the question whether he thinks that his words regarding the election banners of Georgian Dream was interference in the elections because after that 3 TV stations refused to air the banners.

“The EU supports free and independent media in Georgia and any country in the world. Free and independent media is a prerequisite for a democratic system. It is up to the media to decide what it wants and doesn’t want, what statement it will share and what it won’t. I was asked by the media to express my opinion and I expressed it, and it is up to the free and independent media to decide what rules to follow”, - said Paweł Herczyński.

He was also asked a question regarding the statement of Kakha Kaladze, who criticized the Ambassador’s comment on the banners of Georgian Dream and said that in all “developed countries, those who did such a thing would be kicked out of the country immediately”.

“Since day one, I have been very clear that I will not comment on the statements of others. This is not my role as the EU ambassador. My role as an EU ambassador is to present the position of the EU. So, especially now, in the context of the ongoing electoral campaign, please forgive me, but I will not comment on this statement or any other statements. What I can say is that according to the diplomatic practice, there is always a possibility for any country to ask a foreign diplomat to leave. In recent months and years, unfortunately, we had several, actually many such cases in the case of some other countries”, - added the Ambassador.