Mikheil Kavelashvili sworn in as Georgia’s new president as pro-EU predecessor refuses to recognise his legitimacy.Mikheil Kavelashvili has been sworn in as Georgian president in a rite in Parliament within the capital Tbilisi, amid weeks of protests and the refusal of his pro-Western predecessor to face apart.
Outgoing President Salome Zourabichvili stated on Sunday in a defiant speech to loads of supporters outdoor the presidential palace that she used to be leaving the place of dwelling however remained the respectable officeholder.
“This parody, which is these days being performed out in parliament, is a real parody that the rustic has no longer deserved,” Zourabichvili stated.
She added that Kavelashvili used to be no longer duly picked, because the legislators who selected him had been elected in an October parliamentary election that she says used to be marked via fraud.
The professional-Ecu Union chief and protesters are difficult a brand new vote to interchange the election in query.
The Georgian Dream governing birthday celebration and the rustic’s election fee say the October election used to be loose and honest.
Kavelashvili, a 53-year-old former nationwide footballer, took his oath at the Bible and the Georgian charter, swearing to serve the rustic’s pursuits amid a political disaster.
In keeping with native media reviews, there have been no important protests outdoor the parliamentary constructions whilst Kavelashvili used to be being sworn in.
Founding father of the Georgian Dream birthday celebration Bidzina Ivanishvili (R) congratulates new President Mikheil Kavelashvili [Irakli Gedenidze/Pool via Reuters]
Duly elected president
The governing birthday celebration, which controls the parliament, additionally says Kavelashvili is the duly elected president.
The Georgian Dream birthday celebration had threatened Zourabichvili with jail if she refused to go away the presidential place of dwelling within the centre of Tbilisi.
The federal government led via Georgian Dream iced over EU software talks in a transfer that triggered nice protests.
Georgian Dream’s warring parties accuse it of guidance Tbilisi in opposition to Moscow slightly than in opposition to the Caucasus nation’s longstanding function of becoming a member of the EU.
Other people protest outdoor of the Georgian parliament because the parliament starts the process of the presidential elections, in Tbilisi, Georgia, on December 14 [Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP Photo]
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