On 7 May, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Georgia’s former President Mikheil Saakashvili as the head of the Executive Reform Committee, reported georgiatoday. 

The Committee is a newly created presidential advisory body and the executive branch of the presidential National Reform Council. In particular, a decree published on the Ukrainian President’s website states the committee’s function as presenting the National Reform Council’s “decisions in its relations with other government bodies, municipalities, political parties, civil society groups, and mass media, according to the decree.”

After the decision was made public, the Georgian Ambassador to Ukraine Teimuraz Sharashenidze was summoned to Tbilisi for political consultations. The Georgian Foreign Ministry said that Saakashvili’s appointment to the council would not lead to the suspension of diplomatic relations with Ukraine or cause any threats to the strategic partnership. “However, the appointment of a man who was convicted in Georgia and is wanted by Georgian law enforcers by a strategic partner [raises] questions. That is why with the involvement of the ambassador, we should figure out what should be done in this situation not to affect bilateral relations,” the Georgian MFA statement further emphasized. 

Georgia’s diplomatic gesture sparked negative reactions from Ukrainian authorities. The Ukrainian MFA called on Georgia not to make bilateral relations dependent on the reform process in Ukraine. “Overcoming the epidemic and stabilizing the economy are common tasks for all Europeans. These challenges require new approaches and innovative solutions from the Ukrainian government. Mikheil Saakashvili is a Ukrainian citizen who has extensive experience and significant achievements in implementing reforms that are widely recognized in the world. Therefore, we urge our Georgian friends and partners to take into account the arguments stated and not to make bilateral relations dependent on the reform process in Ukraine,” the statement read. 

“We understand the domestic political context in Georgia and do not intervene in it, but for us, Mr. Saakashvili is a citizen of Ukraine. And no state in the world can tell us where to appoint or not to appoint our citizens,” stated Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba. He also emphasized that Saakashvili has already held public positions in Ukraine, but this did not cause aggressive rejection from the Tbilisi officials. 

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that this diplomatic act from Georgia was a “mistake”. He noted that Ukraine “has excellent relations with the Georgian people” and in spite of everything Ukraine would not recall its ambassador from Georgia.

Saakashvili was initially supposed to be appointed as Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, but the motion was withdrawn due to the resistance of certain political figures in Ukraine. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili spoke officially against Saakashvili’s appointment, stating that such a move would be “both incomprehensible and unacceptable.” (Caucasus Watch reported).