1st Round of Dialogue Held between Gov't & Opposition

The first round of dialogue was held today between the incumbent Georgian Dream and the 8 opposition parties who gained seats in the Georgian Parliament following the 31 October elections.

“Political dialogue has begun. It is our great desire to bring our positions closer and today's meeting also served this purpose,” commented the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Archil Talakvadze, after the meeting.

The leaders of all nine political parties met at the residence of the US Ambassador, who also hosted the EU and French Ambassadors to Georgia at the meeting. The parties met behind closed doors; neither participants nor the facilitators have disclosed details of the meeting.

The format aims to facilitate constructive dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition leaders who are boycotting the preliminary election results based on election fraud accusations but who have provided no further evidence to validate their allegations.

The meeting followed yesterday’s statement by the Georgian Dream Secretary General, KakhaKaladze, calling on all political parties who participated in the 2020 parliamentary elections to move the political process to the format of constructive dialogue.

Georgian Dream says it remains committed and open to continuing active engagement with the opposition "in order to convince their leaders to move the political process inside Parliament where it should continue in accordance with the truly democratic standards of a parliamentary republic." Another round of talks is expected in the near future.