Georgia’s Constitutional Court has authorized the commencement of impeachment proceedings against President Salomé Zourabichvili, who has held office since December 2018.
The impeachment request was initiated by the ruling Dream party, alleging constitutional violations by Zourabichvili due to her visits to the European Union (EU), euronews report.
Around a month ago, local news agency Interpress reported that Zourabichvili had engaged in meetings in Berlin and Brussels against the government’s wishes, prompting the Dream party’s decision to seek her impeachment.
During these visits, President Zourabichvili met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin and European Council President Charles Michel in Brussels, with the aim of garnering support for Georgia’s EU candidate status.
However, Dream party leader Irakli Kobakhidze contended that these meetings breached the constitution, asserting that the government had explicitly denied permission for these EU visits. The Georgian court sided with Kobakhidze’s argument on Monday.
“On August 31, September 1 and 6, 2023, during working visits abroad, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili exercised representative power in the field of foreign policy without the agreement of the government, thus violating the Constitution,” declared the President of the Constitutional Court, Merab Tourava.
This impeachment request underscores the internal divisions within Georgia’s government.
Since being elected as a member of the Dream party, Zourabichvili has since left the group, accusing it of being pro-Russian and saying it’s not committed enough to the cause of joining the EU.