Hungarian PM Viktor Orban’s visit to Georgia has faced widespread criticism from other EU states. Orban personally congratulated Georgia’s increasingly authoritarian government in Tbilisi, just three days after a hotly contested election victory. Despite the numerous allegations of vote violations, Orban praised the election as “free and democratic”, without acknowledging the concerns raised by EU observers. Georgia’s pro-Western president, Salome Zourabichvili, has refused to accept the election results, alleging Russian interference. Orban also took a dig at his EU counterparts, suggesting a bias in European politics favoring liberal wins as democratic and conservative wins as undemocratic. Both the US and EU have called for an independent investigation into the alleged irregularities and violations during the election process. Despite the ongoing protests against the election results in Georgia, Orban’s visit has been met with criticism, with the EU clarifying that he does not represent all 27 member states. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who accompanied Orban, criticized the EU for not recognizing the election outcome. Independent monitors have documented numerous violations during the election, including vote-buying, ballot-stuffing, and obstruction of observers. The Georgian president has raised concerns about multiple voting instances and called for the annulment of results from certain polling stations. The election commission has denied widespread irregularities and announced recounts in selected polling stations. Transparency International has expressed doubts about the commission’s independence and the credibility of the electoral process.
