Saakashvili Hails Base Pullout Treaty with Russia

Speaking at the meeting with the staff of the Georgian Foreign Ministry on April 3 President Saakashvili hailed the Georgian-Russian treaty on military bases withdrawal as “historic” and also spoke about the “serious forces” that are trying to undermine Georgia’s development.

“This [agreement] is one of the major victories of our constructive diplomacy. A year and a half ago, when we launched considerations of the withdrawal of the [Russian] bases, many thought it was unrealistic. Last year, when I said ‘no’ to a visit to Moscow unless the issue was solved, many thought that this was extremely radical and some even described it as provocative move. But last year we were able to agree with President Putin on political principles which were reflected in [a declaration] on the level of the Foreign Ministers; but the major document is this one [the March 31 agreement between Russia and Georgia],” Saakashvili said.

He also said that this agreement “is the first major step forward… and we will solve other issues as well.”

President Saakashvili also warned that “very serious forces and a lot of money are working very intensively against Georgia.”

“This is an everyday struggle for our country’s existence and for our country’s integration into Europe. We should bring our country to a safe place against the background of this persisting pressure, as was done by the Baltic states and eastern European states,” Saakashvili said.

He said that problems are consistently being created to hinder Georgia’s development.

“As soon as one problem is solved another one is created, like those [related] with the wine embargo [Russia’s ban to import Georgian wines] and energy problems,” he said.

“Georgia will definitely free itself from all the chains which hinder our development and our return to our European home and final integration into Europe,” Saakashvili said.