The European Union and its partners often talk about democracy, but some fail to respect election results, Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár said at a joint press conference with his Georgian counterpart Maka Botchorishvili.

Blanár stated that despite elections in Georgia being conducted in accordance with the law, some actors demanded a repeat vote.

“The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe recorded minor violations, but it is our obligation to respect the election results. This is not positive for dialogue. We experienced a similar situation in Slovakia. When we won the elections, people took to the streets claiming the vote was unfair. The issue of imposing sanctions on Georgia was raised in the European Union. I asked questions to receive clear answers, but I did not receive them. A meeting was later held where Georgian representatives were not invited. If the government had not changed in the United States and the administration of Donald Trump had not come to power, talks on peace in Ukraine would not have even begun.

We also required NGOs in Slovakia to publish their income, just as government members do. Why shouldn’t NGOs do the same? Let us have discussion and dialogue and ask each other questions. Citizens have the right, without foreign interference, to decide what is good and what is bad for them. We had a similar case with the UK, and through communication we clarified all issues. The main thing is dialogue. I see a willingness for dialogue from the Georgian authorities,” Blanár said.

Prepared according to simultaneous translation