Georgian authorities exclude Saakashvili's extradition

The extradition of Mikhail Saakashvili to Ukraine, of which he is a citizen, is excluded; he will be able to leave Georgia after serving his sentence, Irakli Garibashvili, the Prime Minister, has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, a former president of Georgia, was detained on October 1 after he returned to Georgia and was placed into the Rustavi Prison, where he went on a hunger strike and promised to hold it until his release. On October 10, Nikoloz Kipshidze, his personal doctor, said that Saakashvili's health condition had seriously deteriorated in recent days.

On October 11, Mr Garibashvili said that the recent developments around Saakashvili are aimed at "raising the tension" in the country on the eve of the second round of elections. He also stated that Saakashvili's extradition to Ukraine is out of the question; and no request has been received from Kiev. "This is excluded. ... Firstly, no one (in Ukraine) asks for his extradition, and even if they ask, no one will do it. He will have to serve his term of at least six years, after which he will be able to leave for any country," the Premier has stated, reminding that Saakashvili will have to spend six years in prison, and "the sooner he perceives this reality, the better for him."

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on October 12, 2021 at 00:27 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.