TBILISI: Saakashvili Says Economy the Only Priority for Now

Civil Georgia, Georgia
March 8 2009

Saakashvili Says Economy the Only Priority for Now

Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 8 Mar.’09 / 13:15

President Saakashvili said on March 7 that the government’s only
priority right now was to avert collapse of the economy’s economy and
added that the goal would be accomplished in case of political
stability.

`You know that the Armenia’s economy has crashed completely; why?
Because Armenia has been totally depended on the Russian market; the
Russian market has collapsed and the Armenia’s economy has collapsed
too. We are in the region where economies are experiencing
difficulties; but Georgia will sustain, Georgia will survive even in
the light of difficulties, in case of political stable situation,’ he
said.

He said that Russia had `kicked out’ Georgia from its market three
years ago, but because of reforms the Georgian economy became
resilient.

`We know that people live in hardship; we should not allow the worst
thing to happen ` the collapse economy and it will not happen, because
everything will proceed due to our plan,’ he added.

Saakashvili was speaking at an opening of a new hotel in Tskneti,
outskirts of Tbilisi, which is owned by Russian-based Georgian
businessman, Tornike Kopaleishvili, an owner of network of restaurants
in Moscow. Saakashvili called Kopaleishvili `a real patriot’ for
continuing investing in Georgia despite global economic crisis and
despite of the August war.

`The Georgian government simply has no other job rather than to assist
and stand beside this kind of people,’ Saakashvili said. `If
everything goes in line of our plan, we will be able to resolve all
the other problems as well.’