I am disappointed not only with the election results, but also with numerous violations in the election process. This is a matter of concern, – the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nausėda, told journalists before the informal meeting of the leaders of the EU member states in response to the question of Georgia.
He noted that one cannot “simultaneously talk about the aspiration to join the European Union” and at the same time “establish counter laws, take measures and use insulting rhetoric towards the democratic West.”
Nauseda emphasized that an international, independent investigation of the election process is needed.
“I do not believe that Georgian institutions can do this. It would be very naive to believe that they can. I think there is a need for an international independent investigation into the process. The scale and intensity of Russian interference in the election process has never been greater and is a matter of concern. I’m not talking only about Georgia, I’m talking about Moldova as well, but the results of the elections in Moldova were different,” said the President of Lithuania.
When asked what will be the EU’s response to Georgia, Nauseda answered:
“It is enough to send a clear signal: friends, if you do this, you should not expect to get closer to the European Union. You are moving in the opposite direction; you are moving beyond the EU. I think that this signal should be received and understood, and I hope that Georgia can still change its course, but at the moment I don’t see a high probability that this will happen in the near future.”
Nausėda also answered the question as to whether the Georgian people will be able to do this under the oligarchic regime of Bidzina Ivanishvili:
“Of course, this person is behind all the processes, and we can see how deep and intense the relations with the Russian Federation are. This is the reason why we are talking not only about Georgia moving away from the European Union, but also about its moving closer to the Russian Federation. You can’t choose the middle path: you go to the West or to the East”, he said.
