Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili is at risk of being ousted from office over a trip she took to the European Union, during which she met foreign leaders to lobby for Georgian membership of the bloc.

Zurabishvili is being accused by the governing party, Georgian Dream, of violating the constitution by visiting foreign countries without government permission. It now says it is launching an impeachment bid.

Georgia applied for accession to the European Union after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but the current government of the former Soviet republic is considered to lean toward Russia.

On her trip, Zurabishvili met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin on Thursday then with European Council President Charles Michel in Brussels on Friday. 

In Georgia, the presidential role is ceremonial and the government holds most of the power. Zurabishvili has served as president since 2018.

What has the government said? 

 "At the meeting of the political council of the party, we made a decision to initiate the impeachment procedure against the president of Georgia," Irakli Kobakhidze, the chair of Georgian Dream, said at a press conference on Friday.

Kobakhidze accused the president of "turning a blind eye to gross violations of the constitution."

He said signatures to impeach the president would be collected from lawmakers over the next few days.

Opposition support needed

Kobakhidze, however, said that impeachment proceedings could succeed only if the opposition gave its support.

The opposition has said it will vote against the impeachment if Zurabishvili agrees to pardon former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who is seriously ill in prison after being convicted on charges of abusing power while in office.

Georgia has been pushing for integration into the EU for years, with a 2008 war with Russia fueling hostility between Tbilisi and Moscow.

But over the past year, the Georgian government led by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has given signals that it wants closer ties with Moscow, among other things reopening direct flights with Russia in May, a move condemned by the EU.

In March, the government also tried to introduce a "foreign agent" law that strongly resembled similar legislation in Russia.

 tj/sms (dpa, AFP)