Georgia Denmark protest became the centre of a diplomatic accusation this week, after Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze used a police operation in Copenhagen to claim that the European Union is facing a broader “crisis of values”. His remarks came as Georgia’s own government remains under sustained criticism from the EU, human rights groups and protesters at home over democratic backsliding, repression of dissent and the suspension of its EU accession path.
Kobakhidze pointed to a protest outside the headquarters of Danish shipping group Maersk in Copenhagen, where around 20 people were arrested and charged with unlawful entry after attempting to block access to the building. The protest targeted Maersk over allegations related to shipments connected to Israel, amid wider pro-Palestinian activism across Europe.
The Georgian prime minister described the Danish police response as a sign that Europe is moving away from freedom of expression, human rights and democratic protection. In an open message addressed to EU leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, he said the images from Copenhagen were “shocking” and accused Denmark and the EU of double standards.
His intervention has drawn attention not only because it targets Denmark, one of the EU’s most stable democracies, but because it comes from a government that is increasingly isolated from Brussels. Georgia became an EU candidate country in 2023, but its accession process has effectively stalled after the ruling Georgian Dream party moved further away from EU conditions and introduced laws restricting civil society, media freedom and public protest.
Georgia Denmark protest becomes a tool against Brussels
The episode at Maersk’s headquarters took place in Copenhagen last week. According to Danish reporting, protesters attempted to block the entrance to the company’s headquarters and were removed by police. Twenty people were arrested and charged with unlawful entry.
The police handling of the protest has also faced criticism inside Denmark. Amnesty Denmark called for the incident to be examined by the Independent Police Complaints Authority (Den Uafhængige Politiklagemyndighed), after images circulated showing officers using force against seated demonstrators.
That criticism gives the Copenhagen case a domestic dimension. In a democratic system, police operations can be contested, reviewed and investigated. But Kobakhidze’s argument went further. He presented the incident as evidence that the EU’s human rights standards are collapsing.
“We have questions about the troubling events that unfolded in the heart of Europe, in Denmark’s capital, Copenhagen,” Kobakhidze said, according to Danish public broadcaster DR. He argued that the police response had “nothing to do with Europe and European values” and called on EU institutions to address the case.
The Georgian government’s message was amplified by Shalva Papuashvili, the speaker of the Georgian parliament, who accused Denmark of having a broader record of human rights violations and brought Greenland and the historical spiral contraception case into his criticism. Georgian state-aligned media also gave prominent coverage to the Copenhagen protest.
Why Georgia’s criticism of Denmark is politically charged
The criticism is politically charged because it reverses the usual direction of pressure between Brussels and Tbilisi. Over the past two years, the EU has repeatedly warned Georgia that its government is moving away from European democratic standards.
Georgia’s EU path deteriorated sharply after the ruling party announced in late 2024 that it would postpone progress on accession talks. The decision triggered mass demonstrations in Tbilisi and other cities. Protesters accused Georgian Dream of betraying the country’s European future and moving closer to Russia’s political orbit.
The government has since introduced or supported a series of laws that limit the space for independent media, non-governmental organisations and public protest. Critics have compared some measures to Russian-style legislation targeting so-called “foreign agents”. Opposition figures, journalists and activists have also faced arrests and legal pressure.
Human rights groups have described a wider crackdown. Amnesty International has reported severe restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, and has accused Georgian authorities of using repressive legislation, unfair trials and police impunity to pressure critics.
This context makes Kobakhidze’s focus on Denmark more than a dispute over a single police operation. It appears to be part of a broader political strategy: shifting attention from Georgia’s democratic crisis to alleged hypocrisy inside the EU.
An EU candidate country now moving further away from Europe
Georgia’s relationship with the EU is one of the most sensitive issues in the South Caucasus. The country was granted candidate status in 2023, a decision that reflected both geopolitical concerns after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and strong public support for European integration among Georgians.
But candidate status did not mean accession talks could move forward without conditions. The EU linked progress to reforms on democracy, the rule of law, media freedom and the protection of civil society. Instead, Brussels now says Georgia is moving in the opposite direction.
In March, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos warned that Georgian authorities were putting their longstanding partnership with the EU at “very serious risk”. They said Georgia was now a candidate country “in name only”, a phrase that underlined how far the political relationship had deteriorated.
That assessment is particularly significant because support for EU membership remains high among Georgian citizens. Polls and public mobilisation have repeatedly shown that a large part of Georgian society still sees the EU as a political and social horizon. The conflict is therefore not only between Brussels and the Georgian government, but also between the government’s direction and the aspirations of many citizens.
Russia remains central to this context. Abkhazia and South Ossetia, two Georgian regions, are under Russian military control and are widely regarded internationally as occupied Georgian territories. For many Georgians, the EU path is linked to sovereignty, security and a democratic future outside Moscow’s sphere of influence.
Denmark faces scrutiny, but Georgia faces a democratic test
The Copenhagen protest raises legitimate questions about policing, proportionality and the protection of peaceful assembly. Denmark’s democratic institutions are not exempt from scrutiny, and Danish civil society has already called for an independent review of the police response.
But the comparison drawn by the Georgian leadership is difficult to separate from its own domestic record. In Denmark, criticism of police conduct can be raised openly by rights groups, media and political actors. In Georgia, many of the people criticising the government have faced arrests, intimidation, legal action or violence.
That difference matters. Democratic accountability is not measured by the absence of conflict, protest or police controversy. It is measured by whether institutions allow scrutiny, protect opposition voices and investigate abuses without turning criticism into an enemy of the state.
Kobakhidze’s remarks also come at a time when Georgia’s government is increasingly using anti-EU rhetoric to justify its own political course. By accusing the EU of hypocrisy, the ruling party can present external criticism as politically motivated rather than as a response to democratic backsliding.
For the EU, the episode adds another layer to a difficult relationship. Brussels must respond to democratic deterioration in Georgia without appearing to abandon Georgian citizens who still support European integration. At the same time, it must avoid allowing authoritarian-leaning governments to use isolated controversies inside EU member states as a shield against criticism.
The Danish case may therefore have limited diplomatic consequences on its own. But it shows how European values have become part of a contested political narrative, both inside the EU and on its borders. For Georgia, the central issue remains whether its government will return to the democratic reforms required for accession — or continue moving further away from the European path that much of its population still supports.
