First on Fox: Former Prime Minister of Georgia Nika Gilauri told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that the country now has Russian-style elections, and there is no credible or legitimate parliament in the country, leading to Georgia’s long struggle to join the European Union. Another blow has come. ,
“The election was rigged and right now we have an illegitimate parliament,” Gilouri told Fox News Digital.
For many in the fight for democracy in Georgia, the election victory of the Russian-backed Georgian Dream was undoubtedly a victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin wants to block neighboring Georgia’s Western ambitions in crucial election
Then-Georgian Prime Minister Nika Gilauri speaking at a press conference in Tbilisi on 21 August 2009. (ZVIAD NIKOLAISHVILI/AFP via Getty Images)
“Within minutes of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s announcement of halting Georgia’s European integration process, Putin was praising Georgia’s government for resisting European pressure,” Gilouri said.
“It all seems very well planned,” the former prime minister said.
A demonstrator waves an EU flag during a rally outside the parliament to protest against the government’s decision to suspend talks on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze) (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)
Gilauri, who was the Prime Minister of Georgia from 2009 to 2012, said that you can see Russia’s hand in all the developments happening in Georgia right now. The former prime minister said Russian President Vladimir Putin has a recent pattern of interfering in the affairs of his neighbors, citing a ruling by the Romanian Constitutional Court that voided the country’s presidential election due to Russian involvement, as well as a Moldovan Efforts to weaken democracy were also cited. Anarchy in its political system.
“So, we have a similar scenario, and it was written in Moscow. It was done in Romania, in Moldova, in Ukraine, and it’s being done in Georgia right now,” Guillory said.
Thousands of Georgians have been battling freezing temperatures and authorities for nearly a month after the pro-Russian Georgian Dream party claimed victory in elections and blocked efforts to join the European Union.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his year-end press conference and phone-in on December 19, 2024 in Moscow, Russia. (Reuters/Maxim Shemetov)
According to Amnesty International, more than 460 people have been detained since peaceful protests began on 29 November, with nearly 300 of them complaining of severe beatings and other ill-treatment.
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Gilouri also said that Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili should not step down and remain in her post. Zourabichvili’s presidential term ends on December 29, and the new Georgian Dream majority in parliament has already appointed his successor, Mikhail Kavelashvili.
“The President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, is the only legitimate institution Georgia has at the moment,” Gilouri said.
Demonstrators gather at the parliamentary building during an opposition protest against the Foreign Influence Bill in Tbilisi, Georgia on May 28, 2024. The Georgian parliament has rejected the president’s veto of a “foreign agents” law, raising Western concerns and triggering mass protests. for weeks. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)
Zourabichvili, who is pro-Europe, declared that the elections were fraudulent, and that the parliament was illegitimate and that he had no authority to appoint his replacement. Georgian Dream-backed Kavelashvili is critical of the West, and the opposition sees him as an extension of Georgian Dream’s ambitions to move the country closer to Russia and away from its European ambitions.
President Zourabichvili said that the October parliamentary elections were essentially stolen and that she would not step down. Thousands gathered at a rally on Rustaveli Avenue in central Tbilisi on Sunday night to hear Zourabichvili say the president called on Georgian Dream leaders to negotiate and hold new elections.
In this photo released by the Georgian presidential press service, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili speaks at a joint press conference with the foreign ministers of the Baltic and Nordic states during her visit to Georgia in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Wednesday, May 15, 2024 . (Georgian Presidential Press Service via AP)
“I am willing to sit down and find a solution to scheduling the election, but a decision must be agreed upon by the 29th,” the president posted on Twitter.
While Zourabichvili has become the de facto leader of the protest movement, his decision could create more chaos after his presidential term officially ends on the 29th.
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Georgia’s current Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze suggested that Zourabichvili be jailed if he did not step down from the presidency.
The Russian-backed party Georgian Dream claimed victory with almost 54% of the vote shortly after polls closed on election night. The united opposition got only 38% of the votes. Reuters reported that Georgian Dream says it is committed to integration with the West and a pragmatic policy toward neighboring Russia.
Radio Free Europe reported that Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said after voting in the October election, “This is a referendum between war and peace, between immoral propaganda and traditional values. It is between the country’s dark past and bright future.” There is a referendum.”
Prime Minister of Georgia Kobakhidze attends a press conference in Tbilisi, Georgia on November 28, 2024 (Irakli Gedenidze)
Many opposition figures rejected the victory claimed by Georgian Dream and described the election as stolen and rigged.
The Georgian President and many Western observers confirmed that the election results were marred by irregularities, including fraud and ballot stuffing.
“The elections were characterized by a tense atmosphere and numerous incidents of physical altercations and widespread voter intimidation,” the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said in a statement. European Council President Charles Michel is demanding an investigation into the alleged irregularities.
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Many Georgians have strong aspirations to join the European Union, with polls showing that 83% of them support such a move. The Georgian Dream party has blocked Georgia’s efforts to join the EU since it became a candidate member in 2023. The EU later halted Georgia’s process following a controversial “foreign agent” law that required citizens, non-governmental organizations, media outlets and others. Civil society organizations that receive more than 20% of funding from foreign countries are required to register as foreign agents with the Ministry of Justice.
Following the passage of the pro-Kremlin foreign agent law, the US imposed sanctions and travel bans on Georgian officials who voted for the law and security agencies responsible for suppressing dissent. The State Department also froze $95 million in aid to the government.
Reuters contributed to this report.
