Polish Foreign Ministry Comments on Recent Scandal at Vivamedi Clinic
On July 19, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland commented on the recent event at the Vivamedi Clinic.
The Polish side thanked the Georgian government for cooperating in allowing the former president to travel and be examined in the statement. It emphasized the complete participation of Georgian medical professionals in his care.
According to the Polish Foreign Ministry, the event was not intended to violate the reached accord. The Ministry added that it was corrected immediately and subsequently during the meeting with Georgia's foreign minister. According to the Ministry, in this context, the Special Penitentiary Service's decision to publish the recording of the search of the Polish doctor, as well as the emotive statements made by representatives of Georgian state bodies, contradict the principles of good cooperation.
According to the Polish Foreign Ministry, neither the event nor the Georgian authorities' publication of it will impact how Mikheil Saakashvili's condition is judged, how Georgian medical professionals treat him, or how the test is conducted. The Polish side hopes to continue cooperation with the Georgian partners. It declares its readiness for any potential follow-up actions intended to assist the Georgian partners and the late Mikheil Saakashvili.
Notably, on July 14, the Special Penitentiary Service issued a statement in response to the event and video evidence revealing an episode involving Polish doctors who had visited former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili. The report claimed that one doctor attempted to sneakily remove a sample of Saakashvili by wrapping it in paper and placing it in his shoe. The Special Penitentiary Service stated: "It should be noted that the aforementioned action of the doctor adds more ambiguity to the behavior inconsistent with medical ethical and legal norms since the service itself gave them [the doctors] the right to take the sample officially."