TBILISI, June 21 – A Georgian political movement has accused Moscow of showing “colonial ambitions” after Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized its protest against a Russian language event in central Tbilisi.
Members of the movement Georgian Republic gathered at Pushkin Square in Tbilisi on Saturday and responded to Zakharova’s comments about the marking of “Russian Language Day” in the Georgian capital, Interpressnews reported.
The dispute centers on an event held in Tbilisi on June 6, attended by Dmitry Olisov, head of the Russian Interests Section. Georgia and Russia have had no formal diplomatic relations since the 2008 war, and Russian interests in Georgia are represented through the Russian Interests Section at the Swiss Embassy.
Georgian Republic said it was unacceptable for Russian officials to publicly mark Russian Language Day in Tbilisi while Russia continues to occupy Georgian territories and restrict the Georgian language in those regions.
The movement said Zakharova’s later comments showed that the June 6 event was not simply a cultural marking of Alexander Pushkin’s birthday, but a political act involving Russian officials.
According to Georgian Republic, Russian Foreign Ministry staff have taken part in the event during the last two years, unlike in previous years when ordinary citizens were involved.
The group said its objection was not to Russian as a language, but to official Russian state representatives marking it in Freedom Square while Georgian schools and Georgian-language lessons have been closed in the occupied territories.
It also said the Georgian Orthodox Church still cannot hold services there.
“Georgia’s territories are occupied,” the movement said, adding that Russia bears full responsibility for the worsening situation in the occupied regions.
Georgian Republic also accused Zakharova of hiding what it called the main issue: that Russia is celebrating in Tbilisi the language it has tried to use for 200 years to replace Georgian.
The movement said Zakharova had demanded that Georgian authorities punish its members. It described that demand as a clear example of colonial ambition and said Georgian police at the scene acted professionally.
The group also criticized the ruling Georgian Dream party, saying that despite repeated efforts by the government to take Russian interests into account, Moscow had responded with more injustice. It said the situation in the occupied regions was getting worse year after year and that the Georgian language is now almost no longer heard in Tskhinvali.
Georgian Republic said it supports the peaceful return of Georgia’s territories, but argued that state dignity must be the foundation of any policy.
The movement warned that any political demonstration by Russian Foreign Ministry staff in Georgian public space would produce the opposite result while Georgian territories remain occupied and while the Georgian language and church are pushed out of those regions.
It said Georgian Republic would be present wherever the national interests of the Georgian people require it.
