The Office of the State Minister of Reconciliation and Civic Equality refers to the so-called second tour of the so-called “presidential elections” held on 8 May in occupied Tskhinvali region and condemns this illegal action that contradicts the fundamental principles and norms of international law and blatantly violates Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.

Under the Russian occupation and effective control any so-called elections will not have legal consequences, in the circumstance when hundreds of thousands of IDPs and refugees expelled from their homes as a result of ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions are still hampered to safe and dignified return home, and fundamental rights and freedoms of people on the ground are blatantly violated.

Effective control of the Russian Federation over Georgia’s occupied regions and its responsibility for the violations of human rights on the ground are clearly attested in the Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights of 21 January, 2021.

Against the background of the difficult global and regional challenges, as well as ongoing developments on the ground, the Government of Georgia is steadfastly and consistently pursuing a firmly stated two-dimensional peace policy. This is what the process of strategic review of the state policy of reconciliation and engagement serves, which will be based on specific new visions, depoliticized and humanitarian approaches, as well as the needs and interests of the conflict-affected population.