Giorgi Kalandarishvili, the Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC) Chairman, remarked on the statement of U.S. Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan that, in his words, “gives ground for interpretations.”

According to Giorgi Kalandarishvili, raising awareness of voters is vitally important for the election process and is an integral part of the CEC strategic and action plan; more than 15 thousand volunteers underwent training on election technologies based on the CEC carried out seven pilot projects.

“The election administration pledges its full readiness to cooperate with international partners in this direction and to play a leading role in informing voters, because it is the central agency since it has both intellectual experience and the technologies through which relevant training should be carried out. Therefore, we are ready for cooperation and welcome any support on the part of international partners,” he said.

The CEC Chair called on the interested stakeholders not to undermine the “historic election process due to political interests.”

“With joint efforts and participation, we should ensure holding high-standard, professional-level elections in the country,” Kalandarishvili said.

This statement came in response to an interview of Kelly Degnan, an outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Georgia, to the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty on August 21, during which the Ambassador called on voters to vote and make their voices heard and counted.