Kremlin accuses West of swaying Georgia election campaign by 'blatant attempts'

The Kremlin on Tuesday (Oct 15) accused Western countries of"blatant attempts" to swaythe election campaign in the Caucasus country of Georgia. Russiaaccused the West of influencing the country's parliamentary elections which are set to be held later this month.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, "We see blatant attempts by Western countries to exert pressure on the current Georgian authorities and to exert direct, unveiled influence on the electoral campaign."

"We do not interfere in the internal affairs of Georgia in any way, and we have no plans to do so," he stressed.

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"Georgia is our neighbor. You know all our complications in bilateral relations, which at the same time do not hinder the development of humanitarian ties through the line of societies, peoples of two countries," Peskov added.

The Caucasus country formally became a candidate to join the European Union last year, however, Brussels has since warned that Georgia is drifting away from its stated ambition.

In June, the European Parliament declared the accession process "de facto" and halted it.

Russian spy agency accuses US of plotting unrest ahead of Georgia polls

Earlier in September, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) accused the United Statesof weaponising European election observers to discredit Georgia's elections and trigger pro-Western street demonstrations.

“The US State Department intends to use a new tool to interfere in Georgia’s parliamentary elections on Oct. 26 in order to prevent the victory of Georgian Dream,” the SVR said in a statement last month.

They further claimed that the Americanauthorities were conspiring with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) democratic institutions division ODIHR to declare Georgia’s upcoming elections unfree and unfair.

(With inputs from agencies)