Standing ovations!

Today President Saakashvili held a half hour speech on Georgian-Russian relation and the situation in the breakout republics for the EU-Parliament. For that he was rewarded with standing ovations. And it was fully deserved. He touched several sensitive political issues and managed to place Georgia and it’s cultural traditions within the European culture. In the speech Saaakashvili gave a solid impression of Georgia as the cooperative and clear minded part of the Georgia-Russia conflict.

The speech was on par, or even better that the one he held at the G8 meeting this summer. Obviously this should contribute to boost the Georgian image as a modern and progressive nation in Europe.

President Saakashvili is an impressive speaker when he has a manuscript, but not always on top of things when he must improvise. A number of episodes on national TV have contributed to give an impression of a more emotional politician. Still his performances on the international stage by far outweigh his alleged shortcomings in more heated situations. A big applause for Saakashvili, and a big applause for his writer’s!

The speech can be seen at Rustavi TV