US diplomat Matthew Bryza: US deeply concerned Georgia’s elections were not free or fair

The United States has shown serious concerns over the fairness of Georgia’s recent elections, says former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Bryza. According to Bryza, the absence of a congratulatory message from the US is unusual at this stage post-election and indicates doubts about the election’s integrity.

“Typically, a congratulatory message would have been issued by now. The fact that it hasn’t suggests America is genuinely worried that Georgia’s elections may not have been free or fair. This symbolic escalation, with statements coming directly from the State Department up to the presidential level, is quite rare,” Bryza stated.

Bryza also criticized statements from Georgian government officials suggesting that current tensions with the West are solely due to the Ukraine conflict, claiming this narrative is “propaganda from the ruling Georgian Dream party.” He pointed out that the Georgian government had previously spread “fear-based propaganda” by posing images of war-torn Ukraine with peaceful scenes in Georgia and accusing the US of trying to drag Georgia into the war—a notion he called “absurd.”

“America has no interest in pulling Georgia into a war. It’s nonsensical to think that Georgia’s military capabilities would offer something beyond what Ukraine, backed by European and American weaponry, already brings to the table,” Bryza emphasized. He added that while resolving the Ukraine conflict could help reduce tensions, the core issues straining US-Georgia and EU-Georgia relations stem from within Georgia itself.