Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Apologies have been received from Senator McFadden. In part one of today's meeting we will meet Ms Sofia Katsarava, chairperson of the Foreign Relations Committee and chairperson of the Ireland-Georgia friendship group. She is joined by: Mr. Sergi Kapanadze, deputy chairman of the Parliament of Georgia; Mr. Giorgi Kakhiani, chairman of procedural issues and rules committee; Mr. George Mosidze, member of the Committee on European Integration; and the Georgian chargé d'affaires in Ireland, George Zurabashvili as well as Anna Lominadze from the Embassy of Georgia. They are all very welcome to today's meeting and I look forward to hearing their presentation.

The committee visited Georgia in July 2017 and we had the opportunity for detailed talks regarding matters of mutual interest. Today's meeting provides an opportunity to brief our committee and parliament on issues in Georgia, especially concerning the country's progress in respect of accession to the European Union, a move we support. During our visit to Georgia, we got to visit the administrative boundary line in South Ossetia and we met staff of the European Union monitoring commission, including Irish members. This meeting provides the opportunity to discuss issues encountered in the region, especially the occupied areas of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

We will hear the witnesses' opening statements before going into a question and answer session with members of the committee.

I remind members of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person or body outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

By virtue of section 17(2)(l) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of their evidence to the committee. However, if they are directed by the Chairman to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and continue to so do, they are entitled thereafter only to a qualified privilege in respect of their evidence. They are directed that only evidence connected with the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given and they are asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, they should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable.

I now call Ms Sofia Katsarava and her colleagues to make an opening statement.