Salome Zurabishvili, after the expiration of the powers of the President of Georgia, became a participant in the Henry Kissinger 2025 research program at the McCain Institute at Arizona State University.
"It is a great honor for me to receive the Kissinger Scholarship. In times of struggle between autocracies and democracies, it is very important that we support democratic forces. Georgia embodies this struggle," Zurabishvili is quoted as saying on the website of the McCain Institute, which is based in Washington.
According to the press release, "Zurabishvili will use his rich diplomatic, leadership and political experience to achieve new elections and promote democracy in his country," TASS reports.
The inauguration of the sixth President Mikhail Kavelashvili took place in the Parliament of Georgia on December 29. He was elected for a five-year term on December 14 by the Electoral College. Zurabishvili said she would not resign, as she considers the parliament "illegitimate." After Kavelashvili's inauguration, she left the presidential palace, but continued to consider herself the Georgian president.
Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia on October 26. According to the final data of the CEC, the ruling Georgian Dream — Democratic Georgia party won with 53.93% of the votes and received 89 out of 150 mandates in the legislature. The 5% barrier was also overcome by four opposition parties, which, together with Zurabishvili, refused to recognize the election results, as they considered their results falsified. Opposition leaders have been holding protests since November 4.