"I am not a former president; today, I am the only legitimate president of Georgia," said Georgia's fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, during a panel discussion at the Hudson Institute.

Salome Zurabishvili spoke about the elections held in Georgia, stating that they were an "organized theft of elections" inspired and supported by the Russians.

"I would like to make one small but significant correction to your introduction—I am not a former president. Today, I am the only legitimate president of Georgia, despite the ruling party's claims to have a new president.

As for the elections, this is not about a competition between two forces or parties accusing each other of election theft. In reality, it was an organized theft of elections, well-planned and well-orchestrated. Its inspiration and support came from the Russians because such sophistication and improvisation with diverse means could not have been achieved by local officials alone. This is Russia's new strategy, and this is what you should remember about Georgia.

What is happening here is Russia’s new attempt to develop a strategy involving propaganda, diverse interventions, financial manipulations, bypassing sanctions, and using their friends and close connections within the ruling party to create a hybrid strategy. And here, they used the elections in Georgia to restore their influence, aiming to bring the country and the region back under their control," Zurabishvili stated.