Zurabishvili announced on Saturday that he would remain prime minister because the new parliament is illegal and does not have the power to appoint a successor. He said the Office of the President is currently the “only independent legal institution” in the country. “My mandate remains in effect until there is a legally elected parliament that legally elects someone to replace me,” she said.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, quoted by Reuters, has insisted that Zurabishvili must resign on December 16, the last day of his term.
On December 14th, for the first time, a head of state will be elected by a special university. A majority is held by the ruling Georgian Dream party, which the head of state has accused of steering the country away from democratic standards. The inauguration ceremony of the new president is scheduled to be held on December 29th. The ruling party announced politician and former soccer player Mikheil Kavelashvili as its candidate.
Dream of conflict Georgia – Salome Zarbishvili. US responds
Opposition parties and Zurabishvili have accused Georgian Dream of falsifying the parliamentary election results. In a gesture of protest, opposition politicians refused to accept the MPs' mandate and called for a new election. As a result, only representatives of the ruling party will sit in the new parliament.
Georgia's last direct presidential election was held in 2018, with Zurabishvili winning. At that time, Georgian Dream supported her, but over time, conflicts began to arise between them. Members of this organization have twice attempted to remove the president from power.
The US State Department announced on Saturday that it was suspending its strategic agreement with Georgia. Kobakhidze did not approve of the decision and said the government would consult with the new administration of President-elect Donald Trump when he takes office in January.
Protests in Georgia. Medvedev writes about the “abyss”
Russia also commented on the situation in Georgia. Former President Dmitry Medvedev called the president a “crazy old lady” and criticized his announcement that he would not resign. “There are every reasons to plunge Georgia into the abyss of civil war again (…). Neighboring countries are rapidly plunging Ukraine into a dark abyss. This usually ends in a very bad outcome,” Medvedev said on social media. wrote to the media.
Large-scale protests have erupted in Georgia since Thursday over the government's announcement on the same day that it would suspend the country's European Union accession negotiations until 2028.
At least 44 people were injured and hospitalized during demonstrations in central Tbilisi from Saturday to Sunday night, the Echo Kavkaza news agency said. The injured included 27 demonstrators, 16 police officers and one journalist.
Media outlets stress that these data relate only to those who reported to hospitals, received medical assistance during protests, or were detained.
Mr. Zivno on the appointment of the director of the Institute of National Memory in the presidential election with the support of PiS: Karol Nowogrodski…means Navrocki/Porsat News/Porsat News
