The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has urged the Georgian government to avoid following Belarusian practices regarding the legitimacy of elections and to prevent political crises. This statement comes in light of the parliamentary election results in Georgia, where numerous irregularities were reported.
In their statement, the ministry emphasized, “Ukraine closely monitored the parliamentary elections held on October 26, 2024, in Georgia. We support the conclusions of the OSCE/ODIHR international mission, which documented multiple violations.”
The ministry listed concerns including bribery, intimidation, coercion, and pressure on voters, as well as a lack of transparency in the voting process and restrictions on access to media for opposition parties.
“These are just a few of the irregularities that marked this election,” the statement noted.
It also remarked on the surprising support these election results received from Russia, highlighting that such methods of influencing public expression are characteristic of the Russian regime. This is seen as contradictory to the path declared by the Georgian government toward the European Union and NATO.
To ensure the legitimacy of the elections and to avert a political crisis, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry insisted on the need for an investigation into the facts established by international observers. “We call on the Georgian government not to follow Belarus’s path,” the statement concluded.
