Georgian President’s administration said guilty verdict in the second trial of Russia's ex-oil tycoon, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was “mockery” of justice.

“The verdict has once again confirmed the attitude, which the Russian judiciary has towards rule of law; this is mockery, injustice and violation of all the legal norms,” Manana Manjgaladze, the president’s spokesperson, said in a statement read out on December 28.   

“This is a clear example of what methods are applied by the Russian authorities to persecute people like Khodorkovsky. This is the face of justice in Russia,” she said.

President Saakashvili mentioned Khodorkovsky’s case in his speech at the UN General Assembly in September in the context of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's recent key theme - modernization of Russia's resource-dependent economy.

"Modernization without freedom is not sustainable and you cannot hope to diversify and develop your economy when you send your most successful businessmen to the Gulag, like Mikheil Khodorkovsky," Saakashvili said.