Berlin, 1 September 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili is being threatened with removal from office because of her trip to the European Union.

The leader of the governing party Georgian Dream, Irakli Kobakidze, said on Friday that he would initiate impeachment proceedings in parliament.

Zurabishvili made the trip to foreign countries without the government's approval, which is a violation of the constitution, he said, according to media reports.

The president is a ceremonial head of state in Georgia, with most of the power residing in the government.

On Thursday, Zurabishvili met German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin.

The president then met with European Council President Charles Michel on Friday in Brussels to discuss "EU-Georgia relations as well as broader developments in the region and the consequence of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine for Georgia and the South Caucasus," the European Council said.

Michel also reaffirmed the EU's commitment to support Georgia in advancing on its European path, it said.

Georgia applied for accession to the EU after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The current government of the former Soviet republic, however, is considered to be Russian-friendly.

Kobakhidze said that impeachment proceedings could only succeed if the opposition voted in favour.

If Zurabishvili agreed to pardon the imprisoned and seriously ill former Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili, the opposition has said that it would vote against her impeachment.

Zurabishvili previously held a foreign minister post and was elected president in 2018. Her term ends in December 2024.

Photo: EPA