US Embassy in Tbilisi Rejects Claim That Free‑Speech Rules Favor Europeans Over Georgians

The United States Embassy in Tbilisi responded to a question about recent proposals to criminalise certain forms of online hate speech in Georgia. It rejected the suggestion that European standards could be applied to social‑media insults while Georgian citizens could not, calling the view discriminatory. The embassy emphasized that the U.S. administration, under President Donald Trump, regards freedom of expression as a fundamental pillar of democratic societies and opposes censorship. Georgian Dream deputy Tengiz Sharmana, who raised the issue, argued that the distinction between Europe and Georgia was unjust and asked the embassy to clarify the reasons for its concerns about the new anti‑hate‑speech body.