Georgia’s TBILISI Hardline Western critic Mikheil Kavelashvili was sworn in as Georgia’s president on Sunday amid a political crisis following the government’s decision to halt EU membership discussions, which provoked widespread protests.
In a defiant speech to supporters outside the presidential house, outgoing President Salome Zourabichvili, a pro-EU opponent of the ruling party, stated that Kavelashvili had no validity as president, which is primarily a ceremonial function, but that she was departing the residence.
“I’ll come out here and be with you,” she said.
Before leaving the palace to socialize with her supporters, she continued, “I am taking legitimacy with me, I am taking the flag with me, and I am taking your trust with me.”
Since the parliamentarians who selected Kavelashvili were elected in an October parliamentary election that she claims was tainted by fraud, Zourabichvili claims that Kavelashvili was not properly chosen. She is supported by Georgia’s opposition parties.
According to the nation’s election commission and ruling Georgian Dream party, the October election was free and fair. Kavelashvili is the legitimately elected president, according to the ruling party.
Georgia, a 3.7 million-person mountain nation that was once thought to be one of the most democratic and pro-Western of the former Soviet governments, views the presidential stalemate as a turning point.
Kavelashvili is a supporter of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the de facto leader of Georgia and a reclusive wealthy former prime minister.
The United States placed sanctions on Ivanishvili on Friday, claiming he was leading Georgia’s current pro-Russian and anti-Western trend.
Protesters hold up red cards
Former professional football player Kavelashvili, who briefly played as a striker for Manchester City, has accused Western intelligence services of conspiring to get Georgia to go to war with Russia.
He stated after taking office on Sunday that the Georgian people have always known that peace is the primary requirement for life and progress.
Outside parliament, protesters mocked Kavelashvili’s sporting career by holding up red cards.
In the election held in October, Georgian Dream received about 54% of the official vote.
According to both domestic and foreign election observers, there were infractions during the vote that might have impacted the outcome. Western nations have demanded an inquiry.
The four major pro-EU opposition parties in the nation, who have abstained from parliament since the election, support Zourabichvili. They claim that until new elections are held, she will continue to be the lawful president.
The clash follows a month of protests after Georgian Dream abruptly ended a long-standing national aspiration to join the EU, which is enshrined in the country’s constitution, by suspending admission talks until 2028.
Georgians, who are strongly pro-EU according to polls, were deeply incensed by the action, which led to a police response that resulted in the arrest of over 400 people, including top opposition figures.
Georgian Dream has been accused by Zourabichvili of purposefully undermining Georgia’s chances of joining the EU and turning instead toward Russia, from which Georgia earned independence in 1991.
Supporters of the opposition claim that under Zourabichvili, who was elected in 2018 with Georgian Dream’s backing before splitting from the party in recent years, the presidency was the only institution in the nation that was not ultimately controlled by Ivanishvili, the founder of the ruling party.
They claim that Ivanishvili will have complete authority over Georgia after Kavelashvili is installed.
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