During a recent conference in Munich, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili had a chance not only to be present at a prestigious meeting but also to address assembled bigwigs for the first time since August 2008.
In 2008, when Mikhail Saakashvili was attending a Munich conference, he was asked not to deliver a speech. The reason was obvious, westerner representatives were worried that Saakashvili’s harsh reports could spoil their relations with Russia. This year the situation is different, meaning that the western attitude has changed. Various rows, such as the Khodorkovsky trial, have seriously damaged EU-Russian relations.
As the Georgian President was given the floor at the Munich conference, he criticized Russia vehemently. After the conference he admitted that at last the voice of Georgia had been heard. He also admitted that in 2008 the western powers decided to avoid broad discussion of the war in order to save good relations with gas- and oil-rich Russia.
At the same the Georgian President announced that the country is going to increase its contingent in Afghanistan. This is indeed a remarkable decision. Even today the Georgian contingent in Afghanistan is the third largest after the US and the UK ones, even though Georgia isn’t officially a member of the North Atlantic Alliance.
Georgian efforts to support NATO were appreciated by British Foreign Minister William Hague, who thanked Georgia for its participation in the operations of the Alliance. In the framework of the conference, Mikhail Saakashvili also met the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.
Georgy Kalatozishvili, Tbilisi. Exclusively to VK
