President Giorgi Margvelashvili offered to resume dialogue on constitutional amendments from July 10, President’s Political Secretary Pikria Chikhradze said on Friday.
 
Speaking to reporters on July 7, Chikhradze stressed the need for taking “concrete steps” for launching political consultations and for “outlining the list of issues over which the parties are ready to reach a consensus.”
 
The President’s Political Secretary also touched upon the topics, which, in her words, triggered the Georgian society’s “protest” and the international community’s “critical remarks,” listing electoral system, presidential powers, security, and judicial independence among them.
 
Chikhradze hailed Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili’s statement that the ruling party would be ready to engage into dialogue with other political parties. “Today we all share the view that the constitution that is adopted without consensus, will not have a high legitimation, and the constitution with low [level of] legitimation will not contribute to fulfilling the tasks at hand for Georgia,” Pikria Chikhradze told reporters.

“So, let’s not delay… let’s take concrete steps …and on Monday, agree on the particular issues where we can take concrete steps and how we can meet the international community’s very clear recommendations and instructions in this respect,” she added. 

Earlier, on July 6, President Giorgi Margvelashvili called on the political parties and the civil society organizations to launch the negotiation process, to make the constitution “a consensual document uniting the nation.” 

“I want to urge the parliamentary majority not to use force against political processes and hold an active dialogue with the society and the political opposition,” Margvelashvili said in his speech at the U.S. Embassy event marking the Independence Day.

On July 5, the coordinating council of opposition parties called on the government to continue negotiations on the constitutional amendments. Later on the same day, Parliamentary Chairman Irakli Kobakhidze confirmed the ruling party’s readiness for dialogue. The following day, PM Kvirikashvili also made a similar statement.