Georgia lifted a nine-day state of emergency on Friday and President Mikhail Saakashvili appointed a new prime minister as he prepared to run in a snap presidential election next year.

Europe’s election watchdog on Friday scrapped plans to monitor Russia’s December 2 parliamentary vote blaming obstruction from Moscow, but Russia hit back saying it suspected Washington may have been behind the move.

Russia’s scheduled presidential election will take place on March 2 next year, local media quoted the speaker of parliament’s upper house as saying on Friday.