The government of Sakartveli rejected the request to allow President Salome Zurabišvili to visit Lithuania next week, the Kartveli public broadcaster announced on Thursday.
The decree published on the government's website cited Article 52 of the Sakartvel Constitution, which deals with the powers of the president, and Article 74 of the law "On the Structure, Powers and Procedures of the Sakartvel Government" as the basis for the refusal.
The decree was signed by Prime Minister Iraklis Kobachidze.
As reported, the President of Sakartvelo planned to visit Lithuania on April 10-12, she was supposed to participate in the Summit of the Three Seas Initiative organized by the Presidency.
The Vice-Chairman of the Kartveli Parliament, Archilas Talakvadze, claimed to the public broadcaster that the president's remarks contradicted the country's foreign policy course.
According to A. Talakvadze, the prime minister "is given the right to make a decision on the approval of the president's visit by legal acts. Therefore, there is nothing sensational and nothing controversial here."
Last year, Sakartveli's constitutional court ruled that pro-European President Zurabishvili violated the constitution by traveling abroad without government permission, paving the way for a vote to impeach her.
However, the vote - the first of its kind in the history of Sakartvel - failed when MPs from the ruling party "Sakartvel's Dream" failed to gather enough votes to overthrow the president.
Such a decision was taken after the opposition was worried that Tbilisi is again turning its back on Europe and starting to strengthen ties with Russia.
As reported in mid-September, the government administration did not coordinate 10 foreign trips of S. Zurabishvili.
According to the lawmakers of "Sakartvelo's Dream", S. Zurabishvili lobbied for the country's membership in the European Union while meeting with foreign leaders without the government's permission.
The 72-year-old S. Zurabishvili has been working as president since 2018. Under Sakartwell's constitution, the president's powers are limited and he plays a largely ceremonial role.
Sakartvel together with Ukraine and Moldova applied for EU membership after Russia invaded its western neighbor in February 2022. In December, EU leaders agreed to grant Sakartveli the long-awaited official status of the country's candidate
