TBILISI, May 14 (RIA Novosti) - A Georgian opposition leader denied on Thursday President Mikheil Saakashvili's allegation that opposition members were receiving funding from Russia.
Saakashvili met on Monday with opposition leaders in a bid to find a compromise to end ongoing civic unrest. On Thursday morning, hundreds of protesters rallied outside the state television center, continuing anti-president demonstrations that have lasted for over a month.
Salome Zurabishvili, leader of the Path of Georgia party, told reporters: "During the so-called negotiations, Saakashvili alleged that I was a GRU [Russian military intelligence] agent, that Nino Burdzhanadze [former parliament speaker, who now heads the Democratic Movement-United Georgia] was receiving money from Russia."
She called on the leadership to come forward with any facts to substantiate their allegations, saying they should "put up or shut up."
Zurabishvili said the protests outside the TV station would continue until Saakashvili resigns.
The opposition started the protests in Tbilisi on April 9.
Opposition groups have criticized Saakashvili, a U.S.-educated lawyer who came to power on the back of mass street protests five years ago, of failure to carry out democratic reforms and for dragging the country into the disastrous war with Russia last August, which resulted in the permanent loss of two separatist provinces.
Last Thursday, Georgian opposition leaders gave Saakashvili a three-day deadline to meet with them to discuss their demand for early elections, saying that if he refused to negotiate they would start blocking the country's highways.
Saakashvili agreed to the talks, and the meeting took place on Monday behind closed doors in the Interior Ministry, but the opposition said they had ended without any results.
