YouSaid · the spoken record

Mikheil SAAKASHVILI

lines on the record: 223
first: 2006-09-24
most recent: 2013-09-24
sittings or episodes: 8
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The Finnish Chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also proposed talks in Helsinki in late July, to which we subscribed. Unfortunately, the opposing parties to the conflict repeatedly turned their backs; they had other plans in mind. Finally, on the eve of the invasion, my Special Envoy travelled twice in desperation to South Ossetia to plead for peace. His counterpart from our neighbouring country failed to come to those meetings. He cited a flat tire as the reason for not showing up. 29 08-51606 Within 24 hours, thousands of very full tires were rolling across the border of my country. So words alone are not nearly enough. Nor can words accurately convey the horrors of war. It is difficult, if not impossible, to say that anything good can ever come of war.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Over the years, I have also spoken many times to you about the plans that Georgia has developed, together with the international community, to peacefully reunify my country. I have spoken about the urgent need to replace and transform the failed frameworks for negotiation and peacekeeping in our region. Repeatedly and with sincere intent, I have extended my hand to our large neighbour. Just a few days before the invasion of Georgia, we continued to work furiously for peace. The Secretary-General had sent his Special Representative to Georgia to determine how to fix the broken process of conflict resolution, and we cooperated closely with him. The German Government had proposed peace talks for mid-August — talks that my Government eagerly supported.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“We gave the international community the details of a sharp military build-up by the purported peacekeepers — a build-up that began this spring in both conflict zones, leading to armed attacks this summer by separatist militias. Just before the land invasion began in the early hours of 7 August, after days of heavy shelling that had killed civilians and peacekeepers, we urgently sought to refute claims that 2,100 South Ossetian civilians had been killed by Georgians. That was the excuse used by the invader for what it called a “humanitarian intervention” — a profound perversion of the responsibility to protect. That lie, which was subsequently debunked by Human Rights Watch — which estimated that 44 had been killed — and others, was an attempt to conceal the true motives for the invasion.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“One year ago, I came to this Hall with even more distressing news: that an illegal new military base was being built in South Ossetia by those who hoped that arms and violence could triumph over the will of the people. I noted that that dangerous escalation was taking place under the very noses of the international monitors whose job it was to demilitarize the territory, and I asked that those reckless acts be countered. Our warnings continued in the months and weeks before the invasion. We told anyone who would listen about the campaign that had been unleashed to slander Georgia and my Government while blocking any meaningful negotiations with the separatists. That was part of a calculated effort to weaken international support for Georgia and to lay the groundwork for the invasion.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“We knew that those subversive tactics, combined with the ethnic cleansing that had driven most Georgians from those territories, would one day be used as a pretext for invasion. And that is precisely what happened last month. It is also happening in other countries in our neighbourhood. In 2006, I urgently drew attention to the attempts being made to annex Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and I asked whether any members in this great Hall would tolerate such interference by another Power on their own soil. I warned of the risk that “a Pandora’s box will be opened, unleashing violent separatism and conflict not only in the Caucasus but across many parts of our globe” (A/61/PV.16, p. 4). Today, unfortunately, we stand at that very precipice, where peace could yield to a pernicious new world order.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“If words were sufficient, then something might have come from the many calls for peace and the countless warnings that I myself have made from this rostrum over the years. No one has fought harder than my country and myself to heal the ethnic rifts in Georgia and to bring about a peaceful resolution of the conflict, and we will continue to fight forcefully. Indeed, in this very place, I have warned so many times that this situation was in the making — that there was a threat. Four years ago, we were discussing the dangers posed by the illegal Russian build-up in our country aimed at our territories. We spoke about the distribution of passports and about the illegal bases built on our territories.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“I believe that, together, we have the solemn responsibility to deliver answers to those questions. We will succeed. Let us resolve to bring the right conclusions to the world. 08-51606 28 The invasion of our country provided an impressive demonstration of the power of global public opinion, which can find expression only when societies are open and free. Ultimately, what stopped the tanks and troops from taking our capital was the international disapproval voiced by so many here, by the free media, by courageous human rights groups and by leading voices of the world’s conscience, from Natan Sharansky to Václav Havel. Rhetoric, however, is no longer enough; today, we must act.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“We have experienced the first full-scale cyber warfare campaign, which was aimed at crippling my country’s economy and our ability to communicate with the outside world. It is profoundly distressing to see the technology that has woven our world together and helped to bridge cultures being used to divide ethnic groups and to tear our world apart. Today, when most of the world understands the existential threat posed by climate change and ecological destruction, we in Georgia have witnessed a sickening campaign of ecocide as part of the invasion. That occurred when combat helicopter gunships continuously dropped firebombs on old-growth forests in the Borjomi National Park, which comprises our national centre for tourism, recreation, culture and water resources.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Will we look the other way or reward the dispatch of tens of thousands of troops and hundreds of planes across internationally recognized borders to bomb another country? Will we cover our eyes when ethnic cleansing occurs, as it has over and over again for the past 16 years in Abkhazia and South Ossetia? In a world that struggles to reign in traditional forms of State violence, will we sanction new ones? During the invasion of Georgia, we witnessed several terrifying new twists in the waging of war. We saw proxy forces and militias cynically unleashed to ethnically cleanse the population of my country, operating without any restraint and outside any order. We demand a thorough United Nations investigation of the crimes against humanity, war crimes and human rights violations that have been committed.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Will we encourage violent and hateful separatism around the world, standing aside when State sovereignty is subverted, or will we draw a clear line and defend the principles that uphold the international order and declare, enough? In the twenty-first century, we have better ways to protect the rights of ethnic minorities than with T-72 tanks and Sukhoi fighter jets. We have developed a body of legal and political examples to accommodate minority demands within the context of national sovereignty. After all, that is one of the great achievements of the United Nations, of the European Union and of other multilateral and regional organizations. Its foundation is the belief that democracy and prosperity provide room for all. Are we ready to throw all that away? And what of the use of brute force?”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Reconstruction will also ensure that Europe continues to benefit from the true energy security that comes from diversification. And everything we do will be done peacefully. But today we must ask a series of questions, the answers to which have grave consequences. We have all wondered in recent weeks: was this invasion an aberration or a misguided attempt to resort to the nineteenth-century logic of brute force, or was it a sign of an ominous new trend, one that could continue and deepen to undermine the international order of the twenty-first century, eroding State sovereignty and the power of our common and hard-fought principles? I believe that that question and others have not yet been answered. Others still need to be asked.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“As all parties have agreed, that means the full withdrawal of all military forces from my country to their pre-conflict positions. The world’s actions proved that the most potent response to this brutal invasion is to rebuild Georgia’s democracy and economy, making them even stronger than before. I want to make a special commitment to all those who, during these especially difficult economic times, are helping to fund Georgia’s reconstruction: we will spend their resources wisely, well and with full transparency. Georgia will rebuild. It will contribute to the prosperity and security of all its citizens and of the entire international community by providing stability in our part of the world and serving as a model for democratic development.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“On the most basic level, the world responded with passionate humanity to the plight of ordinary 27 08-51606 Georgians under siege; to the sight of 80-year-old men and women driven from their villages; to the hundreds of thousands of innocent souls taking shelter from bombings; to a small country of less than 5 million people being trampled by a neighbour 300 times its size. The world responded immediately by sending generous aid, by coming to Georgia and by showing its solidarity. Meanwhile, leaders from around the world have been working tirelessly to negotiate and enforce a ceasefire. I am especially grateful to President Sarkozy of France for his dedication to ensuring that the ceasefire is fully implemented in letter and in spirit.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“If our first revolution was about meeting a threat from within by reinventing a failed State riddled by corruption, our second revolution must be even more focused, as we now face an even greater challenge — one that comes from the outside. The success of the first Rose Revolution helped save my country. The health of the international order could well depend on the outcome of the second Rose Revolution. Countless people throughout the world were deeply moved and profoundly troubled by the invasion of Georgia, which began, with tragic irony, on the eve of that great celebration of peace, the Olympic Games.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“This morning, I was honoured to learn that, in Transparency International’s latest index, Georgia was among the few countries to have risen significantly in the rankings over the past year. Indeed, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ranks Georgia among the least corrupt economies in Europe. Despite all the turmoil, my country has endured. That proves the resiliency and irreversibility of our democratic commitment. In short, we will fight the spectre of aggression and authoritarianism with the most potent weapon in our arsenal, namely, our commitment to ever-expanding freedoms within our own borders. That amounts to nothing less than a second Rose Revolution.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“That is why I am announcing to the Assembly four categories of expanded democratic initiatives. First, we will strengthen the checks and balances of our democratic institutions, including granting greater independence to parliament and to the judiciary. Secondly, we will provide additional resources and protections to foster greater political pluralism, including by increasing funding for opposition parties and ensuring they have greater access to the airwaves. Thirdly, we will strengthen the rule of law by introducing enhanced due process, trials by jury and lifetime judicial appointments. Fourthly, we will expand and deepen protections for private property. In everything we do, we will be transparent.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Investigators must have unimpeded access to all officials, documents and intelligence. Georgia welcomes such an investigation. My Government is ready to share every piece of evidence and to provide access to every witness sought by investigators. We call on the other party to this conflict to fully cooperate and not to obstruct the investigation. That is how democracies behave. The truth must come out, not only to clarify how events unfolded last month but also to help us to answer the fundamental questions that this invasion has raised. My Government’s second initiative of openness involves developments within our borders. Whereas others waged this war with arms, we will wage it with values. Georgia was attacked because it is a successful democracy in our part of the world. Our response today is to make our democracy even more robust.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“As a democracy, we have nothing to fear. As a democracy, we have an obligation to our people and to the international community to be even more open and transparent. For me and my Government, that commitment translates into a series of specific actions at both the international and the domestic levels. Allow me to explain. First, I know that there are many people in the world who seek a clearer understanding of how this war started and who started it. Rather than recite our case, let me repeat the simple invitation that I first made on 17 August while standing next to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who visited Georgia immediately after the unleashing of hostilities, when I proposed that there should be an exhaustive independent investigation of the origins and causes of this war.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Thirdly, we must ensure that all parties comply with the full terms of the existing ceasefire agreement. Fourthly, and lastly, we must resolve to create a meaningful United Nations conflict resolution process that will peacefully reunify Georgia and solve the problem. The bottom line is this: we must be ready to use the full power of international law and of our collective international institutions to uphold the historic balance of justice and thereby set in motion a series of actions to right these historic wrongs. While the crisis poses grave challenges for the entire international community, it creates specific obligations for my own country. I would argue that the answer to that new assault on our shared values is not a closing up or a circling of the wagons, but rather greater openness on many fronts.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“We are called upon to answer the momentous question: will this body stand up for its founding principles, or will it allow them to be crushed under the treads of invading tanks, under the boots of ethnic cleansers, under the immobilizing impact of cyberattacks and under the pernicious tactics of violent separatism? What would it mean for every member of this Assembly to defend the underlying principles of the United Nations? First, each of us must refuse to stand silent in the face of this armed aggression and assault on human rights. Secondly, we must stand united and immediately adopt a policy of non-recognition towards Georgia’s two breakaway provinces, currently occupied and 08-51606 26 annexed by the aggressor. Together, we have both a moral and a legal obligation to protect international law and the world order.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“The subsequent recognition of the so-called independence of our two regions — South Ossetia, with a population of less than 20,000 in the areas that Russia controlled, and Abkhazia, with a population of less than 50,000 ethnic Abkhaz — in order to punish our country and send a signal to the rest of the world, not only challenged our territorial integrity but also defied common sense and the elementary principles of international interaction. The ethnic cleansing of hundreds of thousands of our people violated the very idea of human rights. This General Assembly, therefore, faces a general challenge. We are called upon not just to respond to the particular question of one instance of armed aggression in a single place but to define our attitude towards armed aggression in all places.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“The principles enshrined in that Charter include the inviolability of sovereign borders, the sanctity of human rights, the supremacy of international law and the global rejection of armed aggression. All of those principles were put to the test by the invasion and now hang in the balance. The invasion violated Georgia’s internationally recognized borders. At the very beginning of the aggression, we clearly told our own people and the world that the spirit of the people of Georgia would not be broken and that we would never give up freedom and never surrender. We never did and never will.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“I welcome the opportunity today to address this sixty-third annual gathering of the Assembly at such a critical moment in the history of my own country and of the United Nations. Sometimes, the most extreme tests of this institution’s towering ideals arise in small, faraway places, of which we know very little. I come to you as the representative of one of those places — the country of Georgia, a land of fewer than 5 million that last month was invaded by our neighbour. Despite our small size, the legal, moral, political and security implications raised by that invasion could not have greater consequences. Indeed, those issues cut through to the heart of the founding Charter of the United Nations.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“In conclusion, I want to express the gratitude of Georgia for the efforts of the United Nations and its staff. I trust that I have demonstrated that we have the opportunity and, in Georgia, the desire to resolve our common challenges so that the international community can commit its resources to resolving the great challenges of our age. Let us not lose any more time.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“One has to wonder, what was a lieutenant colonel in the Russian army doing on in the Georgian forests, organizing and leading a group of armed insurgents on a mission of subversion and violence? I want to ask our Russian friends: is there not enough territory in Russia? Are there not enough forests in Russia for Russian officers not to die in Georgian forests, on Georgian territory, for them not to fight on foreign territory for God knows what cause for their nation? Whatever the explanation, we regret any loss of life. That person was recruited from Russian peacekeepers and State and local militia. We do not wish anybody such an end to their life. Indeed, we will do everything possible to avoid violence and further hostility and confrontation. This reckless and dangerous pattern of behaviour must not continue.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I believe I have been clear in stating Georgia's intentions and equally clear as to where we are unshakeable in our principles - principles, I stress, that are shared by all nations that seek legality and stability in the international system. We are committed to a peaceful and honest path. Unfortunately, our interlocutors do not seem to be. This morning, a senior Russian official made the very unconstructive, unsubstantiated and untrue accusation that Georgian forces killed two innocent people in Upper Abkhazia. What the senior Russian official failed to say, however, is that one of the people was a lieutenant colonel of the Russian military and that he was killed during a law enforcement operation against armed separatist insurgents.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I believe they also must be a beacon for all of us in this Hall. "Even under the most crushing State machinery, courage rises up again and again, for fear is not the natural state of civilized man. It is man's vision of a world fit for rational, civilized humanity which leads him to dare and suffer to build societies free from want and fear." Those words poignantly reflect what is taking place today in the streets of Burma. In our own corner of the world, for the past four years, the people of Georgia have invested their own sweat and treasure to build such a society - one free from want and fear. We now must ensure that Georgia whole and free includes all the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The only obstacle to the integration of South Ossetia is a separatist regime that basically consists of elements from security services from neighbouring Russia that have no historical ethnic or cultural links to the territory whatsoever. I think that is a very temporary development Now is the time to seize this historic opportunity to avoid the escalation of violence, which is a possibility and a major risk, especially in the territory of South Ossetia. In closing, I would like to share the insights of a woman whose name is on our minds and in our hearts today: Aung San Suu Kyi. Her courage, her resolve and her reflections on peace and democracy, cannot be imprisoned. They travel across every border and barrier to inspire us all. Her words are of profound relevance to the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“These are very courageous people of different ethnicities who want to live in peace and who are willing to take risks, even with their own lives for the sake of peace and a better future for their children. It is the courage of local leaders such as Dmitry Sanakoev, a former separatist leader of South Ossetia who once bore arms against Georgia, who will lead the way. He was chosen by the people of South Ossetia in democratic elections to represent them. This vision will be embraced. I believe we should respect the courageous expression of the ethnic Ossetians who have decided to take that path within Georgia.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“In the past year, the residents of South Ossetia have started down a different path. They are seeking to participate in Georgia's economic growth, to benefit from our new hospitals and our revived schools and to share in and contribute to our democracy. It is the ordinary residents of South Ossetia engaged in extraordinary acts of heroism who are making a difference. It is the children who took their summer holidays on Georgia's seacoast, only to return home and be barred from their schools or menaced by official authorities, who will tear down the barriers of hate. It is the residents rebuilding their towns under gunfire. I have specially met with the workers who continued to build schools, movie theatres and even discos under the gunfire of elements that wish to stop them.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“And this dangerous escalation is taking place under the very noses of international monitors, whose job it is to demilitarize the territory. I have brought a very conclusive body of evidence with me today, to show our friends in the international community the truth that others conceal. I bring that disturbing fact to the Assembly's attention because reckless acts such as that must be highlighted and countered. Our collective job today is not to ask how this is possible. Rather, it is to act with determination and unity. We have all the evidence, we have video footage, documented facts and all the other evidence, and we will present it to the international community, to anybody who has voiced interest in this issue. Sooner rather than later, the march of liberty will prevail.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“But the violent hold of the armed separatists and their patrons is not unbreakable. In South Ossetia, the courage of the people, of common men and women who have chosen dialogue over division, and reconciliation over recriminations, is making a difference. Unfortunately, those who do not share a vision of peace and reconciliation have chosen to oppose peace in South Ossetia, fearful that the power of the people and the desire to live in freedom may undermine their cynical plans. As I speak before you today, elements from Russia are actively and illegally building a new, large military base in the small town of Java, in South Ossetia, in the middle of Georgia, on the other side the Caucasian ridge, very far from Russian territory, hoping that arms and violence will triumph over the will of the people.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“These disputes are no longer about ethnic grievances; they are about the manipulation of greed by a tiny minority of activists, militants, militias and their foreign backers, at the expense of the local population, the displaced and those who are deprived of their property and fundamental rights - even the right to speak and study in their own language. The choice is between a Georgia that is willing to welcome them back with every constitutional recognition of their identity and their rights or a bleak future where they are the objects of propaganda, fear and poverty, and where they are pawns in a big geopolitical game. I have faith that we will succeed. Their masters and foreign manipulators will not succeed. Where does the international community stand? My dear friends, that is the essence of the issue.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“And we are even willing to offer special property rights to all interested groups in order to enhance their identities and to guarantee and secure that their long-term survival will be protected by the State and the international community. Finally, we offer and welcome a robust role for the European Union and a greater role for its engagement on the ground. In short, we offer a level of autonomy grounded in the very same principles that have guided the rest of Europe in promoting peace and prosperity throughout its multi-ethnic tapestry. The continued ignorance of the ethnic cleansing in Abkhazia, Georgia is a stain on the moral account book of the international community.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“It is also perpetrated by the vitiating inaction of those who are good". Let us fill the vacuum with new energy, new commitments and a new common resolve. I want to take this opportunity to elaborate on the foundations of our proposals for a lasting and peaceful settlement. First, we offer the alternative of security and prosperity to those who have been poisoned by the separatist illusion. We offer and recognize the right to full self- governance for all who live in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, within our sovereign territorial borders under international guarantees. We offer constitutional changes to enshrine the protection of minorities including language rights, the protection of culture and education.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Out of this process, we can expect genuine and relevant changes in the legal framework. Although we need effective economic rehabilitation, the main thing we need is a meaningful and implementable plan to bring about the return of displaced persons, guaranteeing their property rights, the establishment of lasting security and the resumption of direct dialogue on the ground without any preconditions and without any adverse movements from sides that are against dialogue. Because of the lack of political will, countless lives in that part of Georgia are being wasted. And inaction has its costs. One of the greatest voices for peace in the last century, Martin Luther King, captured the essence of the problem when he said: "Man's inhumanity to man is not only perpetrated by the vitriolic actions of those who are bad.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“For this reason and in order to inject a new and positive dynamic into the process, I am calling on the United Nations today to launch a comprehensive review of all aspects of the Georgian peace process. The necessity of this review of the peace process is self-evident, and it must result in fundamental changes. Changes are necessary in the negotiation format, which has stalled, and is stagnant and counterproductive. That in turn must lead to real changes in operations on the ground. Years of biased and unbalanced actions by supposed peacekeeping forces must be replaced with competent and neutral ones that will be engaged in peacebuilding and peacemaking, rather than in trying to maintain the so- called status quo, while in fact being biased and preserving the injustices that have happened there. That is the only path forward.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The United Nations has tried to bring peace to this region, but it has not succeeded in making Georgia whole again, despite its unwavering recognition of Georgian sovereignty. Every day that passes without a peaceful resolution to the conflict, every day in which forcibly displaced persons are not allowed to return home, marks a slow erosion of the credibility of this House and of its ability to fulfil its mission. We cannot allow this situation to continue. Fourteen years have passed without a single in- depth analysis being carried out as to why peace has not triumphed or why the legal framework has not been restored and has therefore failed.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing uprooted ethnic Georgians, Armenians, Estonians, Greeks, Jews, Russians and others who had lived peacefully in that land for centuries, creating a depopulated and criminalized wasteland. President Ilves of Estonia spoke today of the parallels between Darfur and Abkhazia. Of course, we should remember Darfur, but we should not forget Abkhazia. President Ilves knows of what he speaks because tens of thousands of ethnic Estonians were also deported and their houses confiscated. In 1992, the Estonian Government had to evacuate some of these people by air under the fire of the people that were attacking this peaceful middle-class population in Abkhazia.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The story of Abkhazia, where up to 500,000 men, women, and children were forced to flee in the 1990s, is of particular relevance - one of the more abhorrent, horrible and yet forgotten ethnic cleansings of the twentieth century. In the time since Russian peacekeepers were deployed there, more than 2,000 Georgians have perished and a climate of fear has persisted. It is worth pausing to remember that today's Abkhazia is populated by less than 20 per cent of its pre-war population. It is an area with very fertile land, beautiful beaches, lovely resort areas and wonderful landscapes. Yet it is all deserted, houses have been destroyed, and signs of hopelessness, desperation and annihilation abound.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“The vast majority of residents from the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia have been unable to reap the benefits of the Rose Revolution that I have just shared with you. Tens of thousands of children in these regions are raised amidst the sounds of gunfire instead of fireworks. Their homes are not their own, and their dreams are distant and frightening. They are prisoners of the morally repugnant politics of ethnic cleansing, division, violence and indifference. But we will not rest until justice is restored, until the rule of law is accessible to everybody. Today, I regret to say that signs of hope are few and far between.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We will not rest until every school in Georgia is filled with empowered and confident students, who have the benefit of new books, a modern curriculum, full Internet access, many computers, until every student gets a computer, and motivated teachers. Just four years ago our schools were barren and desperate - many lacked desks, windows, heat and, above all, hope. Today, reforms in education are sowing the seeds of lasting prosperity, and our students are leading the way. That is the Georgia we promised. And that is the Georgia we have created. It is also the Georgia we will and we must defend. For our democratic project is not yet complete - far from it. Georgia today is not whole.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We were 140th in world, one of the worst rankings, and now we have one of the best rankings for business and in terms of economic development and economic conditions. That is proof of what can be achieved when institutions function and when rhetoric is replaced with results. Four years ago, I spoke at this Assembly about Georgia being a test case for the modern challenges of democratic transition. Today, it is clear that Georgia's transition has led to real transformation. I could recite a long list of other successes since the Rose Revolution and, equally, I could elaborate upon the many profound challenges that remain. But let me focus on what is perhaps our most important duty; the imperative to create a better future for the next generation.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“My Government and I have done everything we can to show how much can be achieved when good governance opens the door to the development of human potential. Today Georgia's economy is growing at over 14 per cent. Our gross domestic product per capita has more than doubled in four years. Corruption is the lowest among transition economies around the world and one of the lowest in Europe, according to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. And as of today, our country has taken its place alongside some of the most developed economies in the world like Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Hong Kong, Iceland, when the World Bank and the International Financial Corporation ranked Georgia as the 18th easiest and best place to do business because of institutionalized transparency and a lack of corruption.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“And, while our most challenging relationship today remains with our neighbours in the Russian Federation, my Government is committed to addressing this subject through diplomatic means, in partnership with the international community. I can say this with confidence, because Georgia is a nation that is rooted in justice, the rule of law and democracy. This is an irreversible choice made by the people of my country. For evidence of that, one merely has to look at how Georgia has responded to the many provocations it has faced in the past year, which range from missile attacks to full-scale embargoes and even destructive pogroms. Rather than lash out angrily, we have redoubled our commitment to democratic development and comprehensive reform.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We contribute to the integrated effort by building new roads, railways and pipelines that weave together the countries of our region, ensuring that people and goods flow across our borders in a manner that is safe, legal, predictable and fair. In short, our vision for the region is guided by the belief that mutual interdependence brings mutual benefit. I believe that the people of Georgia have served as a catalyst and a living example of how governing transparently, through democratic principles, breeds lasting stability and shared prosperity. This is not, of course, a new path for Georgia, but rather a return to our European home and our European vocation, so deeply enshrined in our national identity and history.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We knew that, in order for our freedom to endure, we would have to help advance the peaceful aspirations of others around the world, as a responsible member of the international community of democratic nations. That is why Georgia has lent its sons and daughters to peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. And just this month, we committed a new battalion to serve under French command in Kabul. This is why we have reached out to our neighbours in Europe, Central Asia and beyond to promote peace through cooperation, trade and deeper engagement. Together, we are working to help ensure new and diverse supplies of energy for European and global markets.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Today, in this great Hall, we have an opportunity to reaffirm one of the core principles of the United Nations "the right of every individual to pursue a life of liberty in dignity” by voicing our support for hundreds of thousands of peaceful protesters, monks and ordinary citizens, daring to seek freedom for the people of Myanmar. We must stand fast with them. It is my deepest hope that we will look back and remember this saffron revolution of the Burmese monks as another step in the inevitable march of liberty across the planet. It echoes the rose and orange revolutions that freed the peoples of Georgia and Ukraine from hopelessness and stagnation just a few years ago. When we returned Georgia to its rightful path of peace, democracy and transparency, we did so in the knowledge that our country was not an island.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I am grateful for the opportunity today to address this sixty-second annual gathering of the General Assembly. On behalf of my nation, I would like to congratulate the Secretary-General on his innovative leadership and on the exceptional progress he has made in his first nine months. His steadfast vision for peace in Darfur, his commitment to rallying the world to combat climate change and his determination to eradicate global poverty stand true to the founding principles of this institution. Let me also extend my congratulations to Mr. Srgjan Kerim on his assumption of the presidency of the General Assembly and express our appreciation to his predecessor, Sheikha Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa, for her very effective leadership.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We assume that all nations which share these same values are willing to make the necessary sacrifices for them, so that collectively we can achieve peace in our very important region. Let us, therefore, embrace this historic opportunity and not delay.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)