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Georgia to Summon British Ambassador Over TV Sanctions
Georgian Dream Foreign Minister, Maka Botchorishvili, announced that British Ambassador Gareth Ward will be summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on February 26. The move follows the UK's decision on February 24 to impose sanctions on two Georgian television stations, Imedi and POSTV.
During an appearance on Rustavi 2, the Minister stated that the ambassador will be asked to explain the specific basis for these sanctions. She argued that such actions against media outlets require very solid legal foundations, especially when discussing standards of freedom of speech.
"We had communication with the British side. I expect the British Ambassador to come to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tomorrow. We demand an explanation as to the basis for such a decision to [sanction] Georgian television stations. In addition to the fact that we are talking about freedom of speech and standards of freedom of speech, and we are talking about the media, when we talk about sanctions, this requires very solid legal foundations," Bochorishvili said.
The British government included the two stations in a broader package, labeling them as organizations involved in the spread of Russian disinformation. According to the UK, the channels have been deliberately spreading misleading information about Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine to their audience, which is mainly represented in Georgia.
The sanctions carry significant weight and include an asset freeze, a ban on financial services for asset management, and the disqualification of the director.
Potential Merger of Sanctioned TV Channels with Rustavi 2
Nika Gvaramia, leader of the Coalition for Change, recently shared on social media that a merger between the sanctioned television companies Imedi and POSTV with Rustavi 2 is currently being considered.
According to Gvaramia, the British sanctions will have a crippling effect on the operations of Imedi and POSTV. He claims their broadcasts on international satellite and internet platforms will be stopped, and they will no longer be available on cable TV or Georgian digital broadcasting. He further suggested that the stations would lose access to banking services and the ability to legally sell advertising.
Gvaramia believes that a merger with Rustavi 2 would essentially lead to the cancellation of that station as well. He expressed skepticism about why anyone would think Rustavi 2 could remain unsanctioned following such a move.
"The merger of the sanctioned with R2 is being considered (which I congratulate the latter on), which is actually the cancellation of R2 (like the merger of GTU and TSU). Why do they think that R2 will be unsanctioned for a long time? I can't tell you. R2 and its founders have everything ahead of them. Now we will see them running away (like Rukhadze)," Gvaramia wrote.
He also argued that leadership changes at the stations would not be enough to "purify" the organizations, claiming that founders and managers would struggle to pass bank security checks for the rest of their lives.
