President Saakashvili’s annual address to Parliament

Esteemed Speaker of the Parliament, Your Holiness, esteemed members of the parliament, esteemed guests:

In order to achieve a goal, one should embark on a road to this goal. In order to choose a right direction, find an exact route and correctly assess the chosen course, one should have answers to three simple questions: Where did we begin, where are we going, and where are we now? So, where did we begin? We started when everything was in ruins. We started when Georgia's existence as a state was finished. Our country was deprived of any dignity and people were deprived of their rights. We started from hopelessness, despair, injustice, absence of electricity, absence of salaries and pensions and absence of the public order. We started from a point at which countries and nations usually cease to exist.

What did we start with? We started with our dream of a strong and decent Georgia. We started with our belief that nothing was impossible, that together we could save and protect our country and that we could turn its fate around. We started with the main thing which brought us to this hall in November 2003, the love of freedom. The entire history of our country is a struggle for freedom, all of its victories were always achieved in the name of freedom. The main strength of our small but ancient nation is its love of freedom. A child of Georgia will put up with any challenge but will never give up freedom. Our journey started when we declared that elections must be free.

Today, we can already talk about the first, although very small, completed part of the journey that we started because of the love of freedom. We can talk about where we are now and what we have. Today Georgia is a fully-fledged and rapidly developing state, with all necessary attributes such as a well-tuned and efficient state apparatus, strong state institutions, rapidly increasing financial indicators, employed people, a strong law-enforcement system, a strong, well-motivated, well-equipped and trained army (which I am very proud of), renewed and developing infrastructure, active reforms being implemented in all areas, and the growth indicators never seen before.

We have reached a point when Georgia is respected around the world as a reliable partner and as a country that is becoming a fully-fledged member of the international community, a country which is not simply a separate entity but which creates a geopolitical space around it, a country whose experience is being drawn on, whose revolution was followed by other revolutions. Flags of the Georgian revolution were raised in Kiev, Beirut and Kyrgyzstan. They are being raised today in Belarus and many other countries. Many of you know this very well. The Georgian flag and freedom have become identical notions.

A few days ago, the president of the World Bank said at their annual meeting that Georgia's positive experience in fighting corruption and implementing reforms should be conveyed to the whole world.

We have reached a paradoxical point. On the one hand, our country is still split into three parts. Almost one fifth of our territory is in the hands of demons and evil forces who are suppressing freedom and trampling on human dignity. Recently, we had to endure an energy blockade and natural disasters. However, at the same time, an authoritative political and economic magazine, The Economist, forecasts that Georgia will be the third country [in the world] in terms of [economic] growth and that it will be the fastest-growing economy among the countries that do not have oil resources.

However, if we really want to achieve our goals, the main thing is not to stop. I have not come here to brag about our successes or express my gratitude to people who helped us achieve these successes. We are still a very poor country, a poor country by all economic indicators. There is still great poverty in our country. However, we should also understand that despite everything we have embarked on a route that will help us overcome this poverty and heal these wounds. Our journey will be full of challenges, but we will make it to the final victory.

We started from a point of no funds, no salaries and no pensions. You remember this very well. Today our economy is growing at an unbelievable pace. These are real numbers, not speculation or fairy tales: Georgia's budget has increased five-fold. Pensions have doubled and they are paid in time. Salary arrears of many years have been paid off. For the first time, all employees of organizations directly financed from the budget have salaries above the subsistence level. You remember that when 115 lari was debated in this hall [as a minimum monthly salary] everyone said that this was populism. Is it still populism? Today it is the reality [applause]. I guess former members of the Democrats faction are especially delighted to hear this, Kalbatono [polite form of addressing a woman] Nino [Burjanadze] and Batono [polite form of addressing a man] Misha [Machavariani].

Today Georgian businessmen can work under completely new and favourable conditions. Georgia has obtained the right to use the European Union's generalized system of preferences (GSP). In human language, this means that we can export about 7,200 types of products to the EU market without customs duties. We are also working with the EU on a free trade regime, although it still requires a lot of work. This has created very good prospects for foreign investments in Georgia, because the EU has granted this status to only 14 other countries in addition to Georgia.

In the beginning of last year, revenues of the state budget were planned at 2,260m lari. You remember that many people in this hall were saying that it was foolishness, utopia and populism. They predicted that the government would ask the parliament for a budget cut. In reality, on four occasions, the government asked to increase the budget, much to the disappointment of some opponents, although their disappointment was not the goal [applause]. I do not want to say anything bad, today is Valentine's Day, and some say that it is a day of love.

The volume of direct [foreign] investment, excluding the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan [oil pipeline], has increased by 23 per cent compared to 2004. Compared to 2003, the volume of investments in Georgia has increased by almost 60 per cent. This is just a beginning. According to preliminary figures for 2005, the GDP growth last year was almost 9 per cent, which is a very high figure at a time of high oil prices. Russia, an oil-producing country, had a growth of less than 6 per cent. Had oil prices not been so high, we would have achieved 13-14 per cent growth.

Compared to 2002, taking into account inflation, per capita GDP has almost doubled and reached 1,421 dollars. Taking into account our budget revenues and other income, the [per capita] GDP will reach 1,670 dollars in 2006. By 2010, that is to say, shortly after the end of this parliament's and the president's term, the [per capita] GDP will be 2,400 dollars. You know what this means. By the end of 2008, from 2009, Georgia will no longer be categorized as a poor country by the World Bank and other international organizations. We will leave our poverty behind. This is one of my main ambitions. We are the government who will pull Georgia out of poverty. We should be very proud of that.

Six months ago, we presented [to the parliament] legislative initiatives simplifying the licensing and permit requirements. You remember a big hullabaloo raised here. Our opponents said that if we stopped the Sanitary Inspection from entering enterprises, everyone would be poisoned to death. They said that all cars would be destroyed if we abolished [annual] technical inspections. They said that the sky would fall on us, birds would stop singing, and so on. So, we abolished it anyway, and what happened? Some people have less corrupt income and everyone else feels much better. We have simply destroyed money-making machines of many people.

We are going to continue working in this direction. However, licenses and permits are not the only obstacle to the business development. I think our main problem today is in the customs system. It is not only because of the customs legislation. Reforming the customs system has become an impossible task. Everything else has been fixed, including police, tax services to some extent, and other services as well, but the customs system remains fundamentally the same, except for some cosmetic changes. Hundreds of customs officers have been arrested, caught on [hidden] cameras, but, unfortunately, these people are still unable to come to their senses.

You know that in the past no-one bothered to read the customs legislation because everything was arranged through informal deals. Now we need a new customs code that will be observed by everyone. The issue of customs tariffs should be discussed separately, in addition to simplifying them. Today, importers have to pay customs duties, in addition to VAT, according to the country of origin and the product type. There are 16 tariff categories in Georgia. The tariff category for goods imported from Russia and other CIS countries is zero while goods imported from Europe can be subject to 20 per cent duty or more. This sort of tariff policy hinders the development of business. This year, we will retain only three tariff categories - zero, five and 12 per cent - and we will reduce the number of goods subject to duties. From the next year, we should be able to abolish customs duties at all, as Estonia has done. This will be an important step towards liberalization of the economy. In this regard, we have calculated that the budget revenues will be reduced by 80m lari. However, we should realize that this 80m lari will be invested back into our economy, well-being and employment of our people. Therefore, I am sure that we should go for it.

We should also adopt important changes to the banking legislation. Foreign banks should be allowed to enter the Georgian market freely. There should be a real competition and free movement of capital.

At the same time, serious changes are needed in the bankruptcy legislation. For several months, we were unable to attract investors to Tbilgazi [Tbilisi gas distribution company] because bankruptcy procedures are unreasonably long. Kakheti [province] had no electricity for several months only because one swindler appropriated the Kakheti [electricity distribution] system and then sold it to another person who was not interested in this system at all. As a result, Kakheti was in darkness for several months and we were unable to sell the system because of legislative barriers created by ourselves. Therefore, the bankruptcy law should be simplified as much as possible and this sphere should not be [solely] controlled by the courts. Bankruptcy should be an automatic process.

As regards attracting foreign investments, we should adopt the Hague convention and liberalize our rules. For example, if an American wants to open a bank account in Georgia, he has to produce a document signed by our friend [US Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice. This is utter foolishness. The same rules apply to Europeans, Kazakh citizens, and so on. Of course, we should abolish this and adopt a simpler regime.

We began at a time when there was completely lawlessness in the country. It was not just chaos; there was crime, no discipline, no punishment and no justice. There was no boundary between what was legal and illegal. Crime boss Tariel Oniani would arrive in Tbilisi from Barcelona and would be met by Interior Minister [Koba] Narchemashvili, who would escort him to the centre of town. They were godparents to each others' children. I have heard a few times today's politicians saying that thieves are not as bad as people think. They really are bad people and as long as I am president thieves will no longer be able to do whatever they like. We well destroy thieves as a class and they will never be able to revive. We will tear up their roots. [Applause]

However, this will not be possible without a high level of trust in our police. I have often heard people saying they are fed up with hearing about the patrol police. I will always be ready to thank the patrol police. By the way, today I was informed that another serious crime from last year had been solved. Nevertheless, these people need to be assisted by the law.

By the way, many MPs have been victims of crime, as have your families and relatives. The police catch pickpockets, burglars and muggers outside peoples' houses but then some judge, like [Merab] Turava [recently dismissed Supreme Court judge], lets them go the next day. That is not good. At whose expense is this being done? Where do they go when they are released? To Mars or the moon? They go back on the street, to your houses, into your courtyards, to your children, wives and friends. Is that not true?

They will do anything. For example, someone is arrested for selling drugs and then the judge decides that because they have a 52-year-old grandmother they should be released on probation. Never mind that they have been sentenced seven times, the judge will forgive them an eighth time.

I am announcing a new draft law with zero tolerance for petty crimes. I will introduce amendments to the Criminal Code which will abolish probation sentences for burglary, mugging, pick-pocketing and possession of drugs. There will be no probation sentences. Everyone who commits these crimes will go to prison, because they damage our society. No judge will be able to release someone on the basis of their own views on humane reasons.

For that we will build a new remand prison for 3,000 and more prisoners if necessary in Tbilisi. We are always prepared to make more room for bandits to take them off our streets and away from our schools so that we can forget about them. There will be zero tolerance for any kind of petty crime, my friends. That is our new, very firm, policy, which the judiciary, parliament, the executive government and the police should adopt.

The unending fight against drug addiction. Do you know what a tragedy this is? One of the main narcotics trafficking routes from Afghanistan goes through Georgia. The more the income of young people grows, the more the price of drugs falls. It is now easier to find drugs than bread. I am announcing that over the next four months every state employee will undergo a proper drugs test. This is not the kind that Lezhava used to do in the Justice Ministry or somewhere. These will be proper drugs tests. In a few months there will no longer be a single drug user in state service, or I hope, working in parliament. We will do that. The public has the right to have clear-thinking people working in state bodies.

We are a country that is building many hospitals, schools, roads, fountains and prisons when necessary, because we are a state that needs prisons, schools and hospitals. A state knows how to defend its citizens and their health, how to develop their education system and their opportunities and how to punish those who are preventing society from developing.

I would like to say that agriculture is one of the main foundations of our economy, and everyone knows that. We have greatly increased investment in agriculture. Peasants have been freed from excessive land taxes and we have begun the fight against counterfeit wine production. This year we produced twice as much wine as last year and we have sold twice as much. What have we gained from this? Eight new wineries are being built in Ambrolauri, new vineyards are being planted in Kakheti, new factories are being built in not just Kakheti but also Imereti, Kartli and many other regions, because for the first time since independence counterfeiters are being brought to account.

Some people said let me just sell this 100,000 tonnes first and then we will sort it out. I'm sorry but the place for that 100,000 tonnes is in the river for the fish to drink. Only real Manavi, Saperavi, Mukuzani, Khvanchkara and Kindzmarauli [wine varieties], which people from former Soviet states know by heart, will be exported from Georgia. That is a strategic promise.

We have also begun processing our agricultural produce for the first time. If we want to export our produce somewhere, we cannot just harvest our apples in Gori, take them to the border and give them to one of [South Ossetian leader Eduard] Kokoiti's nephews who will then take them across the border. That is finished because Kokoiti will soon be finished.

We should turn our apples into juice or put our citrus fruit in wax and send them to Romania, Bulgaria and elsewhere.

I would like to talk about our energy workers, because you have seen what we have experienced over recent weeks. However, we were prepared. We gathered here a year ago at a time when everyone was saying that it was a lie to say we would have 24-hour electricity, but we said that we had a programme to light up Georgia and we would restore the energy sector. For the first time since independence, excluding accidents and isolated power cuts, Georgia now has 24-hour electricity supplies throughout the country. I would like the energy workers to stand up. Where are they?

These are the people who, when the Russians said we would need at least two months to repair our power lines, did it in a week. These are the people who did a day's work in six hours. These are the people who, at a time when military vehicles could not reach the pylon in Terjola District, went there by foot knee-deep in snow. They went by foot and did not take candles or heaters with them and worked fanatically with frozen hands to make sure that Georgia had power and people did not freeze.

We will not stop there. In the next few days we will announce international tenders for the construction of 21 new hydroelectric power stations. We already have investors. Georgia's future is hydroelectric power. By the end of this parliament and my presidency, Georgia will turn from being an electricity importer into an electricity exporter, because there is a market and we should use our resources to enter that market. [Applause]

I would also like to tell you that the payment rate for electricity has risen from six or seven per cent this time last year to over 80 per cent now. Yes, Russia has increased the prices and we have absorbed that increase because it would be a very big blow in the winter when so much is being used, but we are already working on alternative sources of energy. We have been working on it for the past two years.

This year will we have the Sah Deniz [pipeline] as an alternative for gas. Gas pipelines are crossing our territory. This year we will no longer be completely dependent on Russian gas. We have already shown everyone that. Some people wondered why [Energy Minister Nika] Gilauri was travelling around the region. He was travelling, my dear people, because we knew our so-called friends would do something like this [reference to explosions on gas pipelines in Russia at the end of January]. I said openly at a meeting four days earlier that they might create problems for us. Of course we prepared for it. I felt it in my heart. [Defence Minister Irakli] Okruashvili said to me at the time that they might be blown up soon because the weather was turning cold. We know very well how those people think. Wherever they can stage an outrage they will, but that does not mean we should be afraid of them, and we are not afraid.

While we are talking about the energy crisis, what did Georgia learnt? They main thing was that the world saw it. Georgia has been without electricity for many years in the past and no-one reported it. Some people asked this time what the Georgian president was complaining about. We have already had one president who, when they blew up the gas and electricity lines, closed his eyes and kept quiet, but what good did it do? Of course we said something. We will raise our voices a hundred and a thousand times again, because no-one will ever be able to stop us, because we have dignity, self-respect and will always tell the truth. We have one policy, which is speaking the plain truth, something important for a small country with a sense of dignity and unity as a nation.

Of course we are prepared for this. Of course we built alternative lines from Armenia, repaired the gas pipeline from Azerbaijan and investigated possible supplies from Iran. Of course we worked on Sah Deniz and with other European importers to explain our capabilities as a transit country. We will certainly follow this through.

I would now like to talk about big politics. It has been a long time now since we have heard of problems in our army, my friends. You remember we had 1,200 soldiers but they would flee their units regularly or rebel and then Shevardnadze had to walk there because he had no money for petrol and beg them to return to their units. There were some amazing stories. Or mothers would go to the units to complain about their sons having to sweep the yard late at night. Now there are no problems.

Our army has grown to a total of 18,000-20,000 people. This is a disciplined, united, motivated army which will, in any circumstances, in the face of the greatest danger - and we are faced with very great danger - rise up and defend Georgia's territorial integrity just as the Finns, Poles and Baltic states have done in their time, and as Georgia has done over the centuries. Defending the homeland and its dignity is in our genes.

At the same time, we are reaching NATO standards. We have the smallest army in the region, but I will tell you a little secret. It is the best equipped and most technologically advanced, because we have put a lot of energy into it, because we know how our enemy, and some of our so-called internal friends, have been lying to the world that this is a danger. You should not trust these people, they will make a mistake. This is a danger for our enemy. We are rightly proud of the army, because without this army Georgia's development would be very problematic. We are a peaceful country, but in this kind of region, with these threats, we need to defend and reinforce this peace. Do you remember that people no longer say let's bomb Georgia? Don't you remember that three or four years ago this was a routine statement? Let's go and bomb them as a preventative strike, they said. Do you know why they don't say that anymore? If they bomb us they will get what they deserve, a punch in the face.

Defence ministers with slingshots are a thing of the past [reference to former Defence Minister Davit Tevzadze who once quipped that the Georgian army could rely only on slingshots against enemy aircraft]. Now we have Okruashvili, who is little more serious.

As I said before, we have started from a point where states and nations die. We have moved from having no rights or authority in the international arena to having a positive international reputation such as we have never had before.

I can say proudly today what I could not say a year ago. Georgia is one step away from NATO membership. If everything progresses as it is doing today, if we avoid any serious provocation, in 2008 Georgia and Ukraine - I have responsibility for Georgia - have a very good chance of becoming full members of NATO. This year we will become an official candidate for membership. [Applause]

If only we had Irakli Tsereteli in parliament now [laughter; Tsereteli was an MP in opposition to then President Zviad Gamsakhurdia who wanted NATO troops deployed in Georgia to oppose Russia]. We have another Tsereteli, but that Tsereteli wanted NATO troops to come. However, we have created an army and with that army we will enter NATO. [Applause]

What does NATO membership mean for us? It means that Georgia's border will be NATO's borders. They will not be defended by just our ten planes or 50 helicopters - not long ago we only had two - or just our tanks - I do not want to say how many we have although I think the enemy knows the possible resistance it may face. It will be defended by several thousand Western aircraft, the most modern armies and most importantly by a political security system with the highest democratic values. Our brazen former brothers will not be able to cross this border unpunished as they have been doing in recent times and particularly in recent years.

We are on the right path and we are very close to achieving our goal. We ought to proceed with extreme care and wisdom. The forces I am talking about have already been punched in the face twice. First when they told NATO not to expand into East Europe and NATO did, and then when they said that the Baltic countries must not join NATO and they did, together with Romania and Bulgaria.

They are no longer saying anything openly. They are just hoping that they can stop Georgia's progress through acts of provocation and disorder. We ought to realize that we are dealing with decision makers with very provocative minds. However, we have a great number of wise people, and our government is experienced enough not to be pushed into making hasty and careless moves.

On the one hand, the whole world should know what is happening here. Teachers in Gali [Abkhazia's district with large ethnic Georgian population] were detained because a child said: Long live my country. An ethnic Georgian priest in Ochamchire was summoned by security officials and tortured for conducting a service in Georgian. A human body was cut in pieces and sent to relatives bit by bit [in South Ossetia]. Unlike the previous government, we have informed everyone of this and everyone has realized what phenomenon we are dealing with. [MP] Shota Malashkhia is working on a submission to international tribunals and I fully support this process. Nino Burjanadze has made brilliant speeches, particularly her last one in Kiev. We have told the world the truth.

We know very well that there are open attempts to annex our territory. We know full well that it is not us but the other side who violates the agreements. These are not ethnic conflicts. We should stop using the words the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict and the Georgian-Ossetian conflict. These are incorrect terms made up by our ill-wishers. These are territorial conflicts. They are about the division of post-imperial space and about where one former large empire's territory ends. Of course these agreements have been violated. Of course there has to be an appropriate international reaction to this. Of course this reaction should be very consistent, very careful and, at the same time, very bold (these are not incompatible things) so that the whole world is with us. Today the whole world is with us.

Only a blind man will deny that President Bush's visit was a huge event not only for this country and this region but also with respect to any region in the world. Not a single American president has made such a passionate, strong and complimentary speech to any fighting nation since President Kennedy's speech in Berlin in 1961. It [Bush's speech] will remain in Georgia's history for 1,000 years whatever one may say. I took part in the Munich conference where Georgia was the main subject and the Georgian president was the keynote speaker. It was the greatest of honours. American and German presidents and a British prime minister were among keynote speakers in the past. This speaks volumes.

At the same time, we should realize that our actions ought to be very consistent and correct. We are witnessing an anecdotal emergence of new Orjonikidzes [reference to Bolshevik leader Sergo Orjonikidze]. You know that there is a new Messiah, [fugitive former Georgian security chief Igor] Giorgadze, and his disciple [deposed Ajarian leader Aslan Abashidze's interior minister Jemal] Gogitidze. Apparently Aslan is tired and busy looking after his family. They have decided that they need a new revolution, or a counter revolution, in Georgia and that [Gogitidze] should sneak in at night and seize the parliament building. I know who is behind the decision.

I want to say that we are in a different time. We are not in 1921 of which some know from KGB textbooks. We are in 2006 and this is Georgia, a beacon of freedom for the whole world, and the whole world is watching us. You are in the wrong place, my dear. This is a different country, a different age, a different government and a different people with particularly strong sense of dignity and self-respect. [Applause]

They may have 1,000 Giorgadzes in Moscow and KGB propagandists may write 1,000 messages. Unfortunately, these messages are often repeated by some of our politicians. They [messages] appear in Moscow and the following day they are repeated in Georgia. For every 1,000 patriot we have always had one traitor and for every traitor we have always had 1,000 patriots. Whatever their annexation plans may be, they must know that nothing will stop our aspiration for freedom, our firmness, our determination and our will. Millions of Georgians will stand united, irrespective of their political views, irrespective of our past and irrespective of our civil conflicts. Our enemy knows that in the past it was easy to push us into a civil war. This is a different Georgia and millions of Georgians will fight tooth and nail to the end for Georgia's freedom and independence.

No-one can say today that Georgia is a failed state. Their main aim is to prevent Georgia's unification. There is no alternative to Georgia's unification. We have peace initiatives and we want to do this peacefully. However, everyone ought to know that any attempt - we have heard statements that the Kosovo model should be applied to Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region - we will prevent all attempts of this sort together with the international community.

Hopefully, we will pass laws on restitution [for victims of ethnic conflicts] with respect to the Tskhinvali conflict. We want our Ossetians to return to Georgia. We want to create conditions for their return. They have always been an organic part of the united Georgian society and the united Georgian mentality. It is a great injustice that they have been away from Georgia. We are doing technical imaging and collecting information in Abkhazia. We should issue certificates for every square metre of land, every flat in Gagra, Bichvinta, Leselidze, Ochamchire, Sukhumi and Tqvarcheli, and all legal owners will be issued with certificates by the Georgian state confirming their ownership. I want to warn every adventurer from Siberia, Moscow, Kursk or any God forsaken place that they have no business in Abkhazia. That property belongs to Georgians and others who lived there. They are not there now but they will be back in Abkhazia very soon, and so will I. [Applause]

Finally, I want to summarize my speech. I want to say what our government's main motto and driving principle is. We inherited it from [medieval poet] Shota Rustaveli: Give treasures to the poor, free the slaves. This means that we must protect the weak members of society. Freedom is our main asset as we strive for progress and development. [Another quotation from poetry:] Give way to talent and value merit. This means that our society should to be based on talent and personal strengths, not cronyism or partisanship. We cherish freedom. Freedom means being your own master [Georgian: tavis-upali].

There is a saying: He is looking after it as if it were his. What shall we look after? What shall be ours? The Georgians should look after Georgia. These boys [cabinet members] and girls are the main recipe for the government's success. Unfortunately, there are few girls left but we still have [Zinaida] Bestaeva holding out heroically.

No-one is in the government forever. These people know that what we are doing is ours. It will remain here for centuries, and nothing can make them happier. [Former Kvemo Kartli governor Levan] Mamaladze stole 50m and Aslan [Abashidze] stole 100m. Where are they now? They are on the run, with forged passports, rotting somewhere in the tundra, Abashidze in Moscow.

Every Georgian, including members of the government, is responsible for doing the job, creating wealth and our future. We believe that we should help the poor. Like I said, give treasures to the poor. Our path is the path of economic freedom. Free the slaves. An educated nation is our future. Give way to talent. The result of our action will be a society based on respect for the worthy. Respect merit. Modern political scientists call this meritocracy, rule by worthy, capable people. It is believed, for example, that America is a meritocracy and that it is successful because of that. Is it new to us? Of course it isn't. Georgians have known for 800 years that we should give way to talent and respect merit.

Our great poet said this long before Jefferson. It is high time that modern Georgians make it a reality. Political freedom for the state and economic freedom and equality for our citizens is the formula for our development. This can be done. Georgia is firmly on this path. For us, freedom means independence and territorial integrity. For the Georgian society, freedom means a genuine self-governance and political democracy. We will have local elections under the law passed by parliament. Freedom for the Georgians means private property and its power, because private property, together with the general values, is the main driving force of a society. It is the state's job to uphold the laws, create equal opportunities and help the poor. Jobs should be created by private business.

We will be a small successful country which will attract investors not by the power of its market but by protecting property better than anyone else and by having the most comprehensible and simple laws and the most reasonable and fair taxes. We will no longer be a poor country because we will have an income [per capita GDP] in excess of 2,000 dollars. We are moving towards this goal at a very reassuring pace.

That which does not kill you, Friedrich Nietzsche said, makes you stronger. Many of you know these words of his. The energy crisis has proved that Nietzsche was right. Nietzsche also said that if you survive hardship you will become stronger. We have survived so many of them that we indeed are stronger today. We will survive an energy blockade if it is imposed on us. We will create an energy system that will be even more stable and independent. We are creating this system. An agricultural blockade, a ban on our produce has been imposed. We all, both the government and business, are working on exporting our produce to new markets. We ought to enter new markets. Is anyone better than us? Why should they take our places in European, Asian, Middle Eastern or former Soviet markets? This is one of our main priorities.

We do not have either oil or gas. We have very little oil and very little gas. However, we will create an economy driven by a free talent. This is our main asset. We are told that we should fight with the Ossetians and the Abkhaz. We will be friends with them and will live together to spite our enemies. This is the principle of our life. Using the examples of Tskhinvali, Sukhumi and even Groznyy I want us to show everyone what freedom and an open, democratic society are capable of doing and what the use of force and crude methods lead to. It is our mission to show the whole world the difference between an open, free society and a totalitarian, authoritarian society. This is Georgia's spiritual mission.

Had we been just a small country no-one cares about the world would not be paying so much attention to us. Turn on your television and see it for yourself. They talk about us all the time. I am not talking about Georgian television. They talk about us all the time. Why are they paying so much attention to us? They are doing this because everyone on every continent, particularly in the post-Soviet space, is watching us. It was believed that this was a country which had to be conquered because of its exceptional beauty and the most interesting and talented people. We have proved that a healthy tree of democracy, freedom and success may grow here, in a country where everyone thought nothing but weed could grow. This is our main asset.

They thought that only the Baltic countries could do this. It has turned out that there is one more country in this region which not only generates revolutions - the president of Ukraine has said on numerous occasions that had it not been for the Georgian revolution there would not have been a revolution in Ukraine. I will tell you that had it not been for Ukraine, it would have been very hard for Georgia. Events in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia and Belarus, in which [MP] Givi Targamadze has all but become a chieftain, I am joking of course, followed. Activists in Belarus fly the Georgian five cross flag. This speaks volumes.

On the one hand, this is a great honour for us. On the other hand, it creates a lot of problems. Can we say no to it? We can't because we have to carry this heavy load. His Holiness [Patriarch Ilia II] has said on numerous occasions that we all have a very difficult mission. We are carrying this heavy load. It is a huge responsibility and an exceptional honour, but it also carries an exceptional threat.

The Lord is with us. They threw a grenade in the square. There was a 3-per-cent chance that it would not explode. And it didn't. They pulled the trigger on an Igla [anti-aircraft missile], the latest version of the Stinger in the Russian arsenal. [Defence Minister Irakli] Okruashvili told you about it. The trigger was pulled but it misfired. Some were probably sorry it did. It misfired. It will not fire because we are carrying the truth and we are on the side of the truth and compassion. Evil will never defeat the truth and compassion. [Applause]

This is our main achievement. Naturally, we are not waiting for something to fire. We are taking measures to reduce the number of shooters and to cut their hands short. I promise that we will take decisive steps in this direction. Our main task however is to be successful, to prove that we will live better than those who have oil, that we will not steal and will build better roads, better schools, better hospitals and a better army starting from scratch.

We have already built the best police force, the best army, we are building best roads, and best new production plants with new technologies are being opened. We will build the most open and successful economy and will prove wrong those who predicted that we would fail and that Georgia would deteriorate into disputes and would discourage others from this path. Everyone will want to be like Georgia and to follow Georgia's path as Georgia's path is a path towards the truth and freedom. I want to thank you. May God be with us on this path to victory. [Applause]

Thank you.