Protests sparked by the visit of the Russian cruise ship Astoria Grande to Batumi and statements made by its passengers have drawn strikingly similar reactions from Georgian Dream leaders and top Russian officials.
"What we have seen is simply savage, and I would like to remind you that this has had the most serious consequences for our country at various times. It was in the early 1990s and again in 2004-2012, including 2008," Irakli Kobakhidze, Georgian Dream Chair said.
Mr Kobakhidze also slammed US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan for her statement expressing understanding for the protests.
"No one should expect Georgians to welcome people from the country that occupies 20% of Georgian territory. Georgians are using their constitutionally protected right to express that feeling to protest against this," Ms. Degnan said.
Mr Kobakhidze insisted Georgians think otherwise.
"The representatives of our society do not think that Russians should not come to Georgia. The vast majority of society has a different opinion. [...] It is not the task of any ambassador to speak on behalf of the Georgian people," he said.
The GD leader also slammed the US ambassador for describing what he called a protest by "150 UNM activists" as a "Georgian people's protest".
In her official comment, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated the Batumi protests had “no support in Georgian society.”
"This protest had no support in the country. We are receiving many calls from Georgian citizens who say that this senseless provocation is unacceptable, from which they distance themselves," Ms Zakharova said.
Ms Zakharova also slammed Ambassador Degnan, claiming that 'the US ambassador is directly teaching Georgian citizens how to live'.
Grigory Karasin, chairman of the Russian Federation Council's foreign affairs committee and Russia's representative in the Karasin-Abashidze talks, also claimed that the protest was marginal and lacked broad public support.
"Activists of Saakashvili's party are not calming down. The seed of hatred towards Russia and Russians that he [Saakashvili] introduced is alive. Sometimes it is on the verge of disappearing, and then it reappears," Mr Karasin said.
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