Author: dmitriy.vasyura@gmail.com

Salome Zurabishvili declares the October 26 parliamentary elections invalid due to massive violations. The president files a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court and proposes to keep the old parliament in place until new elections.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili said that the parliamentary elections held in October cannot be considered as having taken place and called for continued protests, UNN reports with reference to Novosti Georgia.

“The elections in the country did not take place…it is imperative that they are held again as soon as possible,” Zurabishvili said at a special briefing.

Prior to that, she held consultations throughout the day with opposition leaders who have been blocking one of the traffic intersections in the center of Tbilisi for more than a day, demanding new elections.

“Society must continue its actions… its protest. I want to greet from here the people who are standing on the street today and will probably stay overnight,” Zurabishvili said.

According to the president, the October 26 elections “did not take place” and “the country is threatened with destabilization” due to dual power. She believes that systemic problems must be resolved and then new elections must be held.

“One of the threats is destabilization, which could lead to dual power and deepening polarization… this is facilitated by the extremely aggressive propaganda of the government and its supporters. partners chooses isolation, which is typical of the current government. At the same time, we are dealing with the economic and financial crisis that is on our doorstep with all the consequences that follow,” Zurabishvili said.

New claim

The President said that on Tuesday she is filing a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court to challenge the results of the parliamentary elections due to a massive violation of voting secrecy – she refers to ballots with a black circle next to the chosen party on the back.

Also, according to Zurabishvili, the voter's right to vote was violated – in this case, claims to the organization of voting for Georgian migrants abroad.

“Not because I believe in the Constitutional Court, but because I want to fully test the conscience of those judges who will be faced with the choice of what kind of country we want to be and in what direction this country should move. this Constitutional Court has shown that at least a few judges have shown that there are worthy judges in this country,” Zurabishvili said.

Zurabishvili's plan

Zurabishvili said that the former government and parliament of Georgia should continue their work temporarily.

According to the Constitution, the first meeting of the new parliament after the elections is appointed by the president, which Zurabishvili is not going to do.

Zurabishvili said that she is offering political parties, the government and society her vision of a way out of the current political crisis: the old parliament and the old government remain and new elections are being prepared.

According to her, the new elections should be preceded by an international investigation into violations in the October vote to identify and correct systemic flaws “if we want to have new, fair, free and unfalsified elections.

Recall

This weekend, the Central Election Commission of Georgia approved the final protocol of the parliamentary elections, which were not recognized by the opposition and the president, held on October 26.

None of the four opposition groups that received minority parliamentary seats agree with the published results.

The opposition is demanding a new vote and an international investigation into the October 26 election violations, expressing distrust of the investigative bodies and the judicial system.

Boris Johnson, a former UK prime minister, has called for a US$500 billion loan to Ukraine to help it end the war and urged the announcement of a date for Ukraine’s NATO membership.

Source: Boris Johnson on X (Twitter), reported by European Pravda

Details: Johnson made this statement to mark the upcoming 1,000th day of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

He welcomed the news that US President Joe Biden had finally approved the use of ATACMS missiles by Ukrainians against Russian bases.

Johnson also emphasised that the UK and France should immediately give symmetrical positions for the use of Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missiles.

Quote: "Now is the time, furthermore, to give the Ukrainians the financial firepower to survive and win this conflict, with a US$500bn lend-lease style loan which they will amply be able to repay."

He underscored the critical importance of resolving the question of Ukraine's rightful place in the international arena.

Quote: "That means we must have the courage and logic to give the Ukrainians the security guarantee that they need and announce a date in the near future by which Ukraine will join NATO."

The British politician believes these measures will convince Putin that he made a grave mistake by launching the invasion and that he will never be able to subjugate the Ukrainian people.

Background:

• Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has urged European colleagues to mark the 1,000th day of Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s full-scale aggression with new military and energy assistance packages.
• Meanwhile, EU foreign policy representative Josep Borrell stated on 18 November that the EU has been too slow in making decisions on supporting Ukraine.

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Brussels sends a technical mission to assess the situation in Georgia. The country's president and opposition do not recognize the results due to massive violations and falsifications.

Brussels is sending a "technical mission" of the European External Action Service and the European Commission to Georgia to assess the situation. This was reported by Radio Liberty journalist Rikard Jozwiak, UNN reports.

According to him, the decision was made today at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

In addition, according to him, the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus may receive a broader mandate.

Georgian CEC head doused with black paint while approving election resultsNov 16 2024, 10:59 AM • 19670 views

Addendum

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili and opposition parties have not recognized the results of the country's parliamentary elections amid hundreds of violations and questions about the secrecy of the vote identified by observers. The Central Election Commission of Georgia and the ruling Georgian Dream party deny any fraud.

Analysts who have analyzed data from polling stations point to anomalies in the distribution of votes that may indicate fraud: ballot stuffing, driving away or bribing voters in rural areas. Similar violations in the Georgian elections were noted by observers.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in its report on the recent elections in Georgia recorded "cases of vote buying, widespread pressure and party-organized intimidation before and during the elections, especially in rural areas.

The non-profit observation organization "Honest Elections" (ISFED) recorded cases of ferrying, bribery and "carousels" among other violations.

The Council of the European Union adopted a decision on 18 November to extend sanctions against Iran for its military support of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

Source: European Pravda, citing the press service for the EU Council

Details: The decision targets the use of ships and ports for the transfer of Iranian-made UAVs, missiles and related technologies and components.

The new measure bans the export, transfer, supply, or sale of components used in the development and production of missiles and UAVs from the EU to Iran.

The EU also imposes a ban on transactions and any operations with ports and locks owned, managed, or controlled by individuals and entities on the sanctions list. This includes access to port and lock infrastructure, such as Amirabad and Anzali, and the provision of any service to ships.

In addition, the EU Council adopted restrictive measures against one individual and four legal entities.

The list contains the shipping company Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and its director, Mohammad Reza Khiabani. IRISL is Iran's national maritime carrier, and for many years, its vessels have been involved in transporting drones for the EU-listed Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The EU Council also added three Russian shipping companies – MG Flot, VTS Broker, and Arapax – to the sanctions list. Their vessels are involved in transporting Iranian-made weapons and ammunition across the Caspian Sea, including UAV components, to supply Russian troops fighting in Ukraine.

Background:

• In October, the EU announced sanctions against three Iranian airlines, four companies and seven individuals over the supply of Iranian ballistic missiles and drones to Russia.
• Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed that his country had not provided ballistic missiles to Russia.

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