A political analyst in Georgia claims that Armenians voting in the country’s presidential election last Saturday may have given a landslide support to pro-NATO Mikhail Saakashvili in fact to stave off the South Caucasus state’s immediate entry to the U.S.-led military alliance.

Seyran Petrosyan, based in the Armenian-populated town of Akhalkalaki, contends that Saakashvili’s clear victory in areas where ethnic Armenians live is a paradoxical reflection of the reluctance of Georgian-Armenians to see Georgia as a NATO member for fear of increased Turkish influence and a diminished role of Russia.