Georgia’s President: External forces’ blackmail aims to escalate tensions nationwide and wider region

“The entire international community can see that 2025 proved to be a watershed year for the world. It is now unmistakably clear that the international order is undergoing fundamental change, and that nations are increasingly resorting to hard power alongside diplomatic means in pursuit of their national interests and strategic objectives,” declared Georgia’s President, Mikheil Kavelashvili, as he delivered his annual address to Parliament.

Kavelashvili went on to affirm that the events of the past year had borne out, in concrete fact, that the threats and challenges the authorities had been raising publicly in recent years were entirely real. The fact that Georgia had withstood that pressure, Kavelashvili stated, had measurably strengthened both the state and society.

“The events that unfolded around Georgia last year confirmed once again, and with hard evidence, that the threats and challenges we had been speaking about openly over these past years were real. It is now clearer than ever that the pressure and blackmail emanating from external forces, operating through the domestic actors they control, is intended to escalate tensions within Georgia and across the region as a whole.

We have repeatedly stated that since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, Georgia has faced significant pressure, with our society playing an essential role alongside the government. The Georgian people once again demonstrated to the world that they, we, face adversity and injustice with unity, steadfast commitment to our national interests, and loyalty to the values deeply rooted within us. Our people proved that every decision is guided by love of the homeland, and that at difficult, defining moments in history, they always stand sentinel in defence of their country, whilst the state acts in unswerving loyalty to the law and the Constitution. Had it not been for that unity, a single wrong step, even a single concession, could have proved fatal to our statehood.

The very fact that we withstood this pressure has measurably strengthened both our state and our society. As a result, today, against the backdrop of a new world order taking shape, we shall meet whatever challenges lie ahead more seasoned and more resilient than before,” declared Mikheil Kavelashvili.