US concerned as Georgia mulls ex-president's questioning

, March 24: The US on Sunday voiced concern over Georgian authorities' decision to call former president Mikheil Saakashvili for questioning in multiple criminal investigations.

"No one is above the law, but launching multiple simultaneous investigations involving a former president raises legitimate concerns about political retribution, particularly when legal and judicial institutions are still fragile," Xinhua quoted US State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf as saying in a statement.

Prosecutors in Georgia announced on Saturday that they had summoned Saakashvili for questioning on Thursday over a number of criminal cases, including a possible probe into the 2005 death of then prime minister Zurab Zhvania.

The country's current Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has threatened to put the former president on a wanted list in case of his failure to appear.

Saakashvili, a US ally, is not in Georgia as he left the country soon after his second term ended in November last year. Prosecutors have filed charges against several of his allies.

IANS