"Abkhazia remains the principal priority of activities for the head of state and for the people", said Mr. Saakashvili. "The main task of the Georgian state at this stage is restoration of territorial integrity and return of Abkhazia to Georgia", he emphasized.
In the president's opinion, "control over Abkhazia was lost not only through the Shevardnadze government's fault, but also owing to the lack of unity in Georgia, therefore the whole country should participate in regaining the control". The "shortest and most effective way" of doing this, in Mr. Saakashvili's opinion, will be "economic development of Georgia and modernization of the country".
According to the Georgian president, "we strengthen our army to prevent foreign aggression. We are not going to wage war against our population and each Abkhazian should know that we see him or her not as an adversary, but as part of our society, as well as representatives of other ethnicities living in Abkhazia", said the president.
"We are not going to fight Abkhazians, we intend to restore Georgia's territorial integrity, and if this process becomes bilateral, we will all win", stated Mr. Saakashvili.
The deputation of the Supreme Council of the Abkhazian autonomous republic is the Georgian part of the autonomy's parliament still acting in Tbilisi following the war in Abkhazia in early 1990s.
