The analysis points to possible voting irregularities.
The joint statement was released by Congressman Mike Turner, R-OH, Head of the U.S. Delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and Congressman Gerry Connolly, D-VA, Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and President of NATO Parliamentary Assembly. They said that the pre-election period had been marred by “reports on vote buying, voter harassment, abuse of administrative resource, and questionable appointment to election oversight bodies” and that “the elections move Georgia significantly further from NATO and EU membership.”
Alexander Malkevich was reportedly in Tbilisi the day before the parliamentary election on October 26. Reporters Without Borders, an international media watchdog, was among those to break the news. The organization noted that it was “alarmed by the role played by this Kremlin relay in the spread of Russian disinformation” in Georgia. Malkevich was once a close associate of the Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prgozhin.
Bloomberg reports that Singaporean court has reduced the damages Swiss UBS must pay to Georgian billionaire Bidzina ivanishvili USD 282 millions. UBS’s damages to Ivanishvili will therefore be reduced from $743 million down to $461 million. Ivanishvili, in a pre-election Imedi TV interview, referred to the long-running legal battles he has had with Credit Suisse regarding access to his funds to prove that he was “de-facto sanctioned”.
Shalva Papuashvili, the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, commented on the recent enlargement report by the European Commission. He said that Georgia “progresses on the path to EU integration” and that the ruling party has “evaluated the report positively”. According to the EC Georgia has made “good progress” on 12 chapters and “some” progress on 13 chapters despite the fact that Georgia is in a parliamentary elections year and is “under constant obstruction from the opposition and NGOs.”
Peter Szijjarto, the Hungarian Foreign minister, in an interview with Georgia’s pro-government Imedi TV, expressed the support of his government for the Georgian Dream government and its policies. He dismissed questions about the legitimacy of the recent elections in Georgia, and slammed the Western criticisms of GD’s controversial laws. He urged Georgian politicians to focus more on the will of voters than European Union standards and liberal viewpoints.
Six international press freedom watchdogs released a joint statement, expressing their deep concern over election-related incidents in Georgia, including intimidation and threats, as well as physical and verbal attacks against journalists. The statement calls on Georgian authorities to “end attacks on journalists” and to “thoroughly investigate all incidents of violent conduct.” It also urges the international community “to place effective pressure on Georgia in order to uphold press free and ensure a safe environment for reporters.”
The Data of the Day
According to rapid estimates released by Georgia’s National Statistics Office, the estimated real Gross Domestic Products (GDP) for September 2024 will grow at an estimated 8.3% compared to the same period the previous year.
Geostat states that the following activities have contributed significantly to growth: construction, financial and insurance activities, transportation and storage and trade. The energy sector has seen a decline.
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