Welcome everyone.
I congratulate you on your graduation from the military lyceum.
We are very proud of your institution and the lyceum’s graduates of 2012.
Hopefully, you are also proud to be the graduates of this institution.
You have received the best education and I am glad that 75 out of 78 have decided to continue their studies at the military academy.
There is no greater honor than to serve your country in an army uniform.
There is no greater merit than to fight for your country and be ready to give your life for it.
Without dedicated heroes, Georgia would not be a functioning country today, and neither would it exist.
Many nations have evaded, including the nations that had a great history like Georgia – they could not manage to defend themselves and find their spot on the world map.
Georgia faces huge challenges, part of our territory is still occupied, but we know from experience that every occupation is temporary, while Georgia – is perpetual.
The idea of a perpetual Georgia needs to be defended and this is the job of all generations.
What you serve today is to save our country, to fortify and strengthen it; the behavior of our country is an example to follow for many countries – for the majority of this region. This already is the case and we will still continue working in this direction.
I would like to thank your pedagogues, lecturers, officers, those people who trained you.
I know that together with the theoretical and practical exercises, you have undergone a very good physical training.
It was the right decision to restore this institution, whereas it closing then – a very bad idea.
That is why we have gathered the best people here – I know that the competition has been much greater than our capacity would allow for.
Lots of things have changed towards better in the defense sphere, especially in the last 2-3 years.
As we do not show it on TV, perhaps many people are not aware of this. We used to always show defense and the army before, but I have noticed that whatever is on TV often, as a rule, is not as effective as what is being done inaudibly, slowly, calmly, but with great expertise and dedication.
Since Bacho became a minister, we managed to create a new Academy of Defense and rightly establish a Cadet’s Corps.
The Academy of Defense is one of the best military institutions today, at least in our part of Europe.
We have invited many foreigners to the academy and have many prominent officers and instructors.
We are proud of our Academy of Defense and if many of you are lucky and are accepted, I am sure it will be an opportunity for you to get an unbelievably high level of education, especially when you have already received a fairly high level of education here in this institution.
In the defense sphere, together with the learning element, we have created a new Georgian military industry with the leadership of Bacho and all of our contributions.
The other day, the world’s leading TV Company CNN was covering Georgia’s military industry, and the journalist was stunned and amazed by what he saw.
Several countries like Georgia have their own military industries in the world – Sweden, Singapore, Israel, Georgia…I cannot think of any other state, which has started from scratch and developed a military industry.
We are amongst the developed countries and it is only the beginning of a beginning.
Our equipment, as well as the level of training will enhance significantly in the upcoming years. We will never have a huge army, but in parallel we will have about 100 thousand reservists. Each of them will be ready to defend their village, street, micro district, block, neighborhood…and god forbid, but in case of need, to protect their homeland with arms at hand.
We have also built very good engineering buildings in the past years. We are not showing off with it, as it is our function, but the General Staff, the Defense Minister, the leadership of the Ministry and our industrial power sites – we all are working together to develop all of this and reach our set goal.
This learning institution is in Kutaisi and this fact very much irritates, especially our occupant, while together with him, the pride-less Georgian’s who serve him.
They are very much irritated by the idea that Kutaisi can become not only the parliamentary capital, but a very important political and social center of Georgia.
Georgia needs several centers, while Georgia itself has to become a center of the whole region.
Tbilisi has never developed at such a pace, I have never been so proud of being a resident of Tbilisi, as I am today.
Those from Kutaisi have to be equally as proud and the rest of the population of Georgia, all of us, have to be proud of Kutaisi.
Nothing can prevent the moving of Parliament to Kutaisi now, and I am sure this idea will finally materialize during the Parliamentary elections – the first meeting of the Parliament will be held here.
No matter who says what, it is a very popular idea in Georgia, and our people understand everything exactly.
Other government structures are moving– the Constitutional Court to Batumi, the Ministry of Refugees and Accommodation to Gori, but what’s important as well is the creation of employment centers, the creation of centers of economic development for our citizens. This is a new opportunity and something that underpins the new Georgia.
It is an impetus of hope for our people and a substantial object of admiration for many foreigners, for many countries and people around us.
In order for this great Georgian reconstruction not to be hampered and stop, for no one to encroach and ruin it, we, as never before, need the integrity of people filled with patriotic spirit, strong state structures and foremost, strong armed forces.
The Georgian Armed Forces is the most credible state structure – there is nothing more credible in Georgia than the army.
This means that people have appreciated the dedication of our officers and soldiers.
They have saved the independence of Georgia at the expense of their own lives. People appreciate this and when the army needs to be filled, we find new soldiers without problems.
We have an able army – we are participating in the Afghanistan Operations and whoever has questions on this, has to understand that if we want to have a country, it is necessary to have a strong army; and if we want to have a strong army, we need to be at the forefront.
Our people realize and know this very well.
The one who wants to occupy and enslave the whole of Georgia is not at rest, which is why we need to continue mobilization and reconstruction in those fields, in which we have done so far.
Congratulations my fellow men! I congratulate your parents, relatives, friends, that they have raised you, such strong men.
I wish to you that you bring fame to yourselves first, your family and of course, your homeland.