Mamuka Katsitadze of the New Rights Party from group of eight opposition parties and ruling party’s chief negotiator on electoral-related issues MP Pavle Kublashvili held “a brief meeting” on June 17, the both politicians said.

“I received a clear-cut answer that in several days the authorities will be ready to make concrete and substantial proposals in response to our [electoral system reform] proposals based on which, they think, it may be possible to make an agreement,” Mamuka Katsitadze told Tbilisi-based Maestro TV. “I told him that if within a week there is no response we will deem that they [the authorities] have nothing to say and that the process if over.”

He said that the ruling party was expected to make those proposals within a week.

“After that the group of eight will discuss those proposals and decide whether they can be deemed or not as a genuine step towards improving the electoral system,” Katsitadze said.

MP Pavle Kublashvili told Civil.ge on June 18, that the two sides would try to draw positions closer based on the proposals, which the both sides have already tabled. He was referring to the ruling party’s proposals put forth on March 9 and the one proposed by the group of eight on April 5.

“Time will show whether it will be possible or not or to what extent to draw our positions closer,” MP Kublashvili said.

He also indicated, that restoration of a negotiating format known as Election Code Working Group (ECWG) in which talks were ongoing from November 2010 till March 2011 was less likely at this stage. MP Kublashvili said that “individual talks” with separate parties would be “more effective.”

He said that the next meeting with an opposition representative was expected to take place next week.