Russian FM accuses West of mocking Georgian people over election results

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has criticized the West for allegedly mocking the Georgian people by refusing to recognize the outcome of Georgia's October 26 parliamentary elections and ignoring the conclusions of the OSCE/ODIHR (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe/Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights) observers.

Speaking on the issue, Lavrov stated that the West, blinded by its own sense of superiority and impunity, believes it has the right to judge the results of elections in other countries. He cited the elections in Georgia, Moldova, and Romania as examples of this behavior, Caliber.Az reports per Russian media.

"Look at how the Georgian people are being bullied. By the way, they accused us (Russia-ed.) of having interfered there. The OSCE observers did not find any major violations. This formula means that everything was done, everything was right, everything was legitimate. Yet, they don't like it," Lavrov remarked.

According to the final report from the OSCE/ODIHR mission, the October 26 parliamentary elections in Georgia were held in a generally free and competitive environment. However, some irregularities were noted, particularly regarding the dominant financial influence of the ruling party, Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia.

The ruling party "Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia" won the parliamentary elections with 53.93 per cent of the vote, according to the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia.

As a result, the party secured 89 seats in the 150-member parliament. The “Coalition for Change” garnered 11.03 per cent of the vote, winning 19 seats, while “Unity – National Movement” obtained 10.17 per cent and secured 16 seats.

The party “Strong Georgia” received 8.81 per cent of the vote, earning 14 seats, and “Gakharia for Georgia” gained 7.78 per cent, winning 12 seats.

By Vafa Guliyeva