Zourabichvili on peace in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region

In her plea to the Abkhaz and South Ossetians, President Salome Zourabichvili underlined Georgia's commitment to peace. "At a time when some may try to deceive and create false anxieties by threatening war," President Zourabichvili said, "Georgia is not trying, and will not try to recover areas by force."

"You must know, and as the elected President of this nation, I assume full responsibility for these words, the pledge made by Georgia, as the Caucasus does not break its word," she signalled.

"With our citizens who live in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali Region... we must, once and for all, find a common language, without which there will be no common future," the President said during her speech. "Today, Georgia's perspective has become increasingly obvious, and that is an expedited route to European integration," Salome Zourabichvili urged Abkhaz and South Ossetian inhabitants. "Unity cannot be attained via coercion or the slavery of others. That is something we already know. This is why plurality, multi-ethnicity, and a multi-party system are essential components of that unity," she added.

"In and of itself, this means that we must know how to make compromises, how to take into consideration, or at the very least comprehend, the viewpoints of others," she concluded.

Georgia's President said Le Pen’s potential win would be very major concern

The possibility of far-right leader Marine Le Pen defeating current President Emmanuel Macron in French presidential elections is "a very serious concern," according to Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili.

When asked if it worries her that Macron may lose to a "far-right candidate" during an MNSBC interview, the President said, "it is quite disturbing if that were to be true."

"It's critical for us that the most pro-European leader, Emmanuel Macron, wins, together with Germany's Scholz and Poland's President Duda."

"Those are the three men who make Europe strong." Salome Zourabichvili said, "Europe that supports Ukraine, Europe that opens up to the three connected nations - Georgia, Moldova, and, of course, Ukraine first."

"It would be a great issue to see a closer to Putin candidate winning the contest in France," she said.

According to national broadcaster France Télévisions, Macron earned 28.4% of the vote in the French presidential election on April 10, while runner-up Le Pen received 23.4%, setting up a re-run of the 2017 race. However, while Macron comfortably defeated Le Pen in the 2017 runoff, surveys and analysts believe the centrist President may have a tougher time in this election.