Georgia's Mikheil Kavelashvili sworn in as president amid protests over EU application freeze; outgoing leader Zourabichvili disputes his legitimacy.
Mikheil Kavelashvili, a hardline critic of the West, was sworn in as president of Georgia on Sunday amid a political crisis after the government froze European Union application talks in a move that sparked major protests.
Outgoing President Salome Zourabichvili, a pro-EU critic of the ruling party, said in a defiant speech to supporters outside the presidential palace that she was leaving the residence butremained the legitimate officeholder.
Zourabichvili says that Kavelashvili was not duly picked, as the lawmakers who chose him were elected in an October parliamentary election that she says was marked by fraud. Georgia's opposition parties support her.
The Georgian Dream ruling party and the country's election commission say that the October election was free and fair. The ruling party says Kavelashvili is the duly elected president.
Read next
16:43
Georgia
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze hosted his Armenian counterpart, Nikol Pashinyan, during his visit to Tbilisi, as both leaders underscored the strategic partnership and positive trajectory in bilateral relations between their countries.
13:01
Bulgaria can play a key role in the development of the Green Energy Corridor project, - said Energy Minister, Zhecho Stankov, at the 10th ministerial meeting in connection with the strategic partnership agreement for the development and transmission of green energy.
14:34
The Swedish Government has instructed Sida, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, to stop all cooperation with Georgia in response to "the serious deterioration of the democratic situation" in the country.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment