Thousands rally in Georgia as PM rebuffs calls for new election

TBILISI: Thousands took part in a fourth day of stormy nationwide protests against a government decision to shelve EU membership talks, as the prime minister rebuffed calls for new elections.

The Black Sea nation has been rocked by turmoil since the governing Georgian Dream party claimed victory in October 26 parliamentary polls that the pro-European opposition said were fraudulent.

The opposition is boycotting the new parliament, while pro-EU President Salome Zurabishvili has asked the constitutional court to annul the election result and declared the new legislature and government “illegitimate”.

Tens of thousands have taken to the streets for the protests against the election result and now Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze´s announcement on Thursday that Georgia would not seek to open accession talks with the European Union until 2028.

About 150 demonstrators have been arrested in the new wave of protests.

Thousands waving European and Georgian flags gathered outside parliament on Sunday evening, with some banging on the metal door blocking its entrance.