Back again

President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili is back again after more than three weeks absence from the country. Such a long absence became the subject of criticism from the opposition while representatives of the ruling party stated that during his stay in the US, Georgia’s president had some very important meetings and has done much to benefit the country. Mikheil Saakashvili made a speech at the nuclear summit on April 14 and met President Obama there. On April 15 he had a meeting with US vice president Joe Biden, on April 16 he made a speech in Washington to the Atlantic Council of the United States and, on April 18-19 he made a one day trip to Poland to attend the funeral of Polish President Kachinsky, He then returned to the USA where on April 20 he made a speech at the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. On April 21 he met multi millionaire developer Donald Trump in New York On the same day he met new York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (who is also the owner of Bloomberg newspapers), and on the same day he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from New York University. On April 27 he participated in a meeting at Los Angeles Millikin University.

The Opposition evaluates these meetings and activities as insignificant, noting that a responsible President should not leave the country for such a long time for such meetings, especially at this time when the country faces very serious threats from the north. The ruling party however considers these meetings very important and highlights the efforts the President has made in establishing important contacts as a result of these meetings.

The opposition discusses and suggests different reasons for the president’s absence. Some of the opposition members think that there is a serious confrontation inside the ruling party itself and Saakashvili has no ability to balance the confrontation. That’s is why he escaped from the scene.

According to another version Saakashvili was in the USA to receive more substantial and direct support from the Obama administration. It is interesting that during his US appearances Saakashvili mostly highlighted his opinion about the successes Georgia has achieved after the Rose Revolution. He also stressed the fact that in comparison to Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine the revolution in Georgia was successful. And Georgia has achieved serious democratic reform. This statement, however, is challenged by the opposition. but one way or another the ruling party as well as the opposition and the whole country has to pass a very serious exam-the forthcoming local elections, which will be a clear indication of whether the country has stepped steadily on the democratic path or it is just a facade to disguise some faults.