After Georgia Elections, ‘Problems and Much Work Remain’
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
MOSCOW — Georgia’s parliamentary elections, in which the party of President Mikheil Saakashvili won more than 60% of the vote, were beset by problems, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said.
“These elections were not perfect,” the head of the OSCE delegation, Joao Soares, said in a statement. “Substantial progress has been made. Problems and much work remain.”
Georgia is crossed by an oil pipeline carrying crude to the Mediterranean from the Caspian Sea, bypassing the Middle East and Russia and increasing the nation’s strategic importance to the West. The election in the nation that borders Russia and the Black Sea was a test of Mr. Saakashvili’s democratic credentials after he faced Western criticism for imposing a state of emergency in November. The opposition accused the government of rigging the vote.
