William Courtney, former US ambassador to Georgia, spoke at a panel on Georgian parliamentary election organized by the American Enterprises Institute.
“In the post Soviet space, governments that are in power too long may start as reformists like Putin, but then backslide. It happened to Shevardnadze and Saakashvili. Now, it’s happening with “Georgian Dream”. The real problem is that there is no government change or power, which is essential for democracy. William Courtney said that the difference between these elections was that, in the last 30 years of Georgia’s independence there has never been such a hostile government to the West. This government has taken a more pro-Russian, less friendly, and anti-democratic course towards the West.
During his speech the former US ambassador in Georgia also discussed the possible reaction of Western countries after the parliamentary election.
“Not long ago, it seemed that Georgia and Ukraine were both on a parallel path to joining the European Union while implementing democratic reforms. Ukraine has maintained its democracy despite the stress brought on by the war. Georgia, however, has moved in a completely different direction. We in the West must watch the elections and how they are conducted because we have had mixed reactions in the past to election fraud. In 2020, we will introduce light sanctions against Belarus. But, we will not impose sanctions on Azerbaijan or Uzbekistan because they also had elections that were not fair. Colin Powell, Secretary of State, said that the 2004 “Orange Revolution” election in Ukraine was not legitimate after the first two rounds which were not fair and free. Will we see the West react to the October 26 elections in a way that is more like Belarus or Azerbaijan or Uzbekistan? It all depends on Georgians, how much fraud was committed, and whether the people will protest, as they did during the Orange Revolution when it was rejected. It will depend on Europe’s actions, because Europe is more significant than us. Georgians want be part of Europe and not the United States of America. William Courtney said, “We’re looking at these factors.”
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