Giorgi Gakharia [leader of the For Georgia party] was given a straightforward directive: to carry out provocations aimed at damaging the nation’s interests. Such a statement made today the Prime Minister of Georgia.

“I want to present Gakharia’s actions in a more nuanced light. This was not merely an isolated incident. Each time he carried out provocations, they resulted in significant harm to the country’s vital interests. Before these events, there were cases in Basiani and Pankisi - numerous instances where Gakharia’s decisions inflicted serious damage on Georgia.

I am not a hypocrite, and I cannot believe he did this purely out of stupidity or without following orders. His actions were in line with explicit orders to provoke and undermine the country’s sovereignty. These directives came from external sources, the Deep State [DS].

One of our key messages to the public is that today, Georgia is more independent and sovereign than ever before. We were not governed by external forces, but we had to report to the DS. This was the reality in 2019 when a call came from the DS. It was an official contact, though at that time, he was not representing the interests of any legitimate authority, but rather the interests of the DS. Today, we refuse to make such compromises”, - said Irakli Kobakhidze.