Mikheil Saakashvili
He told the opening of a restored Georgian-Turkish school in Batumi that Georgia was on a new path of development and nobody would succeed in returning the country to its dark past.
'Georgia has always had people, who do not love their homeland. There are people in the country today, whose criticism of the government grew into hatred of the government and whose hatred of the government finally grew into hatred of the country. I would like to tell them that we have much wider prospects for development than they can even imagine. Our country has made its choice - we will be free and powerful without Russia. We will never be a minor appendage of anybody,' the president said.
Saakashvili hailed the bravery of Georgian emigrants in Russia. He said that, despite their large number, the Russian government had failed to win them over.
'Over 400,000 Georgian nationals live in Russia today and this is an elite part of our society. They failed to find and use any successful Georgian against their homeland. We are still a long way from our final goal, but we are on this road and nobody will be able to drag us back into the dark past,' Saakashvili said.
Rustavi2
Commentary