Georgia has no plans to send observers to monitor the February 7 Ukrainian presidential polls runoff, but rejects accusations that it tried to disrupt the first round of voting.
"Georgia will not send its observers to Ukraine for the second round of the elections as the issue of Georgian monitors aroused a diversity of opinions," presidential spokeswoman Manana Manjgaladze said.
"It was not our aim to interfere in the Ukrainian elections," she continued, adding that Georgia would cooperate with any new president.
She also said Tbilisi was calling for Georgians who had been invited to Ukraine by "international organizations" to monitor the polls to return home.
Ukraine will choose between opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in a runoff election on Sunday after the January 17 first round failed to see any candidate gain 50% plus one vote.
Last month, four Georgian nationals were detained in eastern Ukraine during the first round of the Ukrainian presidential elections, with the opposition claiming attempts had been made to disrupt voting.
The Georgians arrived in Ukraine to "interfere in the electoral process...to alter the outcome of the elections and disrupt the vote," Mykola Azarov, a member of the Party of Regions told a news conference.
Ukraine's central election body had earlier refused to register over 3,000 observers, sent by Georgia to the polls, citing the absence of necessary documents. The number of monitors from the Caucasus state exceeded the total number of observers sent by other states and international organizations.
Ukraine's outgoing president, Viktor Yushchenko, is an ally of Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili. Yushchenko received just 5% in the first round of voting on January 17.
Both Yanukovych, who was openly backed by Moscow in the 2004 vote, and Tymoshenko, who has worked with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to resolve bitter gas disputes, have pledged to improve ties with Russia.
Yanukovych enjoys the support of mainly Russian-speaking eastern regions. He won the first round of the elections with 35% of the vote against 25% for Tymoshenko.
TBILISI, February 3 (RIA Novosti)
