Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Georgian Parliament responded to the US Congressman Joe Wilson’s statement at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly`s Political and Security Committee meeting.

Nikoloz Samkharadze criticized Wilson for failing to condemn the sham "elections" held in the Russian-occupied region of Abkhazia while questioning the legitimacy of Georgia`s parliamentary elections.

"Mr. Wilson, if your concerns were genuine, you would have also condemned the sham elections held in the occupied region of Abkhazia. Now, let`s move to another crucial issue - the parliamentary elections in Georgia. Despite the elections being conducted in a politically pluralistic environment, with the implementation of transparent electronic voting technologies, and being significantly better organised than previous elections, a group of foreign politicians, including Mr. Wilson, refused to recognize the results and continue to disseminate completely unverified accusations and disinformation.

One member of the European Parliament even accused, and I`m quoting, "OSCE/ODIHR of being under the influence of the regimes that are not interested in free and fair elections. Such statements not only seek to undermine the reputation and integrity of OSCE itself but also highlight their utter disregard for the willful choice of the Georgian people.

We are also deeply concerned about the pressures that had been applied to the OSCE/ODIHR mission from certain political foreign groups to influence the contents of the final report and about the interference of these politicians in the pre-election campaign. We stress the importance of upholding the principles of international law and call for unequivocal support, respect and support towards the freely expressed will of the Georgian voters, urging all parties to honour the decision with an unwavering commitment to Georgian people’s sovereign rights. And there are no reports from any international, credible international organizations that have said that the elections in Georgia were rigged", - said Nikoloz Samkharadze.

In his remarks, Joe Wilson urged his colleagues to demand new elections in Georgia and to cease regular interactions with the ruling Georgian Dream party until they comply with certain demands.