On December 12, Shalva Papuashvili, the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, stated that the level of democracy in a country could be assessed by how its leaders interacted with the press , arguing that Georgia demonstrated a higher standard in this regard than European Union countries. Papuashvili emphasized that those who claimed to represent the democratic world should be prepared to listen to critical questions and respond to them calmly. He noted that the Prime Minister of Georgia, the President of Georgia, himself, and the leader of the parliamentary majority regularly spent hours each week engaging with journalists and did not avoid difficult questions. According to Papuashvili, "maybe only" Donald Trump, the President of the US, also did not shy away from critical questioning. He contrasted this with European leaders, emphasizing that they did not display a similar readiness for tough exchanges with the media. "Look at any other leader in the EU. Who spends so much time in tough talk mode?" Papuashvili emphasized.