US congratulates Georgia on successful elections
By Tea Mariamidze
Wednesday, November 2
The United States (US) congratulated the people of Georgia for the successful completion of the country's parliamentary elections, and underlined that Georgia is a leader of democratic reform in the region.
The statement of the White House came after the OSCE election observation mission assessed both the October 8 elections and the October 30 run-off as “competitive and administered in a manner that respected the rights of candidates and voters”.
“Political leaders from across the spectrum played an important role in urging all their supporters to show restraint during the electoral period so that Georgian voters could freely make their own decisions,” NSC Spokesperson Ned Price stated on Monday.
However, the US side expressed concern about isolated incidents of violence and intimidation and urged accountability as well as a thorough and balanced investigation in accordance with the rule of law.
“We now encourage political leaders from all parties to work together in pursuit of goals important to all Georgians, including democratic consolidation, security, and economic prosperity,” Ned Price said.
Moreover, the NSC Spokesperson underlined that the White House looks forward to working with the new government and parliament “to support Georgia’s democratic and economic development, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its Euro-Atlantic aspirations.”
The US Ambassador to Georgia, Ian Kelly stated.
“I think, once again, this showed that Georgia is a leader in terms of democratic development ensuring that elections are competitive, that there are a number of points of view and Georgian voters have a chance to exercise their right of freedom of choice,” Kelly stated after the assessments of the international observers.
The Ambassador said that it was important that all political parties in Georgia worked together for the common goals, like developing democracy, creating jobs and integrating with the Euro-Atlantic community.
“The United States looks forward to working with all elements of the Georgian society and Georgian political system to attain these goals,” said Ian Kelly.
