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Georgia Inaugurates Pro-Russian President Kavelashvili as Zurabishvili Rejects Result Amid Mass Protests

Dec 29, 2024, 08:50 AM

Georgia inaugurated Mikheil Kavelashvili as its new president on Sunday amid a deepening political crisis and mass protests involving over 2,000 demonstrators. Kavelashvili, a former footballer and hardline critic of the West, was sworn in at a ceremony attended by Bidzina Ivanishvili, the US-sanctioned founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, but boycotted by opposition parties and foreign diplomats. The inauguration followed the government's decision to freeze European Union membership talks, sparking widespread demonstrations in the capital, Tbilisi. Outgoing President Salome Zurabishvili, who had spent the previous night in the presidential palace, refused to recognize Kavelashvili's legitimacy, declaring herself the "only legitimate president" and leaving the residence to join thousands of protesters. "I will leave this place and be with you... I am taking legitimacy with me," Zurabishvili told supporters outside the palace. Protesters gathered outside the parliament building, showing red cards to Kavelashvili—a symbolic reference to his football career—and expressing support for closer ties with the EU. Police reportedly arrested several demonstrators and acted indiscriminately, using undue force to disperse the crowds. The political turmoil raises concerns about Georgia's democratic trajectory and its relationship with Western allies.