TBILISI, May 22 – Georgia’s parliament speaker launched new attacks on German Ambassador Peter Fischer on Friday, accusing him of damaging relations between Germany and Georgia.
Shalva Papuashvili, one of the top figures in the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party, said Fischer had mocked Georgians with his comments about the “deep state,” a term increasingly used by ruling party officials to describe hidden forces they say are working against Georgia.
According to Papuashvili, Fischer had spoken in a sarcastic tone, saying he had looked in a room and then in a bathroom but did not find the “deep state.”
“He is practically mocking Georgians,” Papuashvili said, as reported by Interpressnews.
The speaker went further, saying Fischer was also mocking U.S. President Donald Trump and former British Prime Minister Liz Truss, both of whom he said had also spoken about the “deep state.” Papuashvili called Fischer’s behavior a “kamikaze-level act.”
The latest attack is part of a widening spat between Georgian Dream officials and the German ambassador.
The row intensified after the German city of Saarbrücken moved toward suspending its 51-year partnership with Tbilisi, citing political developments in Georgia. Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze answered with what he called a “letter of condolence to the German people,” accusing German bureaucracy of serving the “deep state” and saying Germany was stuck in crisis.
Fischer then hit back, saying Kaladze’s statement showed Georgia was moving away from the EU.
“This is not how you enter the European Union, definitely not. You can take this advice from me as the ambassador of an EU member state,” Fischer told TV Pirveli, according to a Georgian translation cited by Interpressnews.
Papuashvili now says Fischer should not speak for the EU.
“The capital of the European Union is in Brussels, not Berlin,” he said, adding that the EU ambassador could speak about what is needed for EU membership. “The German ambassador should stay in the square that has been allocated to him as Germany’s representative.”
Papuashvili also accused Fischer of encouraging violence, disinformation and propaganda. He said the ambassador would be remembered in Georgian society as the German envoy who posed in front of what Papuashvili called a fascist slogan and described people who attacked a female MP and her minor child as Georgia’s future.
Fischer has become one of the most outspoken Western diplomats in Georgia during a period of severe tension between Georgian Dream and European governments. The ruling party says it still wants EU membership, but on terms that protect sovereignty, peace and traditional values. Its critics say the government is deliberately pushing the country away from Europe.
Former diplomat Gia Japaridze said Fischer had once been sympathetic toward Georgian Dream and had friendly relations with several ruling party figures educated in Germany. But he said the ruling party had now turned on him.
“I told him that if there is a snake in the room, you cannot play with that snake,” Japaridze said. “They have now bitten him.”
Japaridze also said Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s recent open letter to EU leaders was written in “the best Soviet traditions” and aimed at making the EU itself reject Georgia.
