Georgia will not invite Russian observers to monitor the January 5 early presidential elections, Nino Burjanadze, the acting president, said in an interview with the Russian newspaper, Vremya Novostei, published on December 4.

“Russia hasn't invited us to monitor elections [in Russia] either,” she said. “Not everyone who would possibly come to Georgia would be objective. There are more and more signs that Russia is not interested in Georgia’s stability and welfare.”

She also said that invitations to monitor the forthcoming election had not been sent to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Tbilisi, she said, had, however, invited some CIS member states, which have “friendly” relations with Georgia.

The Georgian authorities have already called on the OSCE and other international organizations to send “as many observers as possible” to observe the January 5 polls.