Georgia: Investment

(asked on 6th October 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Sugg on 28 September (HL8057), what plans they have to accelerate their assessment of the government of Georgia's amendment to their communications law following the expropriation of telecoms provider Caucasus Online; and whether they plan to raise concerns with the government of Georgia about the reasons for that government's takeover of a privately-owned internet provider shortly before parliamentary elections.


Answered by
Baroness Sugg Portrait
Baroness Sugg
This question was answered on 16th October 2020

Our Embassy in Tbilisi have reviewed the amendments to the Law on Electronic Communications, and discussed with other Embassies and NGOs in Georgia. The UK's view, and that of the stakeholders we have consulted, is that these amendments seek to address national security concerns, and have been put in place to protect Georgia's critical digital national infrastructure.

The case involving Caucasus Online is currently under arbitration, and therefore it is inappropriate for the UK Government to comment at this time. We will continue to monitor developments in this case closely.

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