Speaker Papuasvili: Georgia has forward-thinking government acting in country’s interests

“Maintaining calm, peace and security in a turbulent environment is truly an achievement. We often say this not only ourselves, but also those who observe Georgia from outside the country,” Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuasvili said.

Speaking on Georgian Public Broadcaster’s program Actual Topic, Papuasvili said Georgia currently has a forward-looking government that acts in accordance with the country’s interests, which he said benefits the country both economically and in terms of security.

According to Papuasvili, Georgia has restored the qualities of governance that helped the country endure for centuries.

“It is important that we finally say why all of this is happening. I think the main factor is that the Georgian state has returned to the qualities with which our country survived for 3,000 years.

“Somehow, since the restoration of our independence, we had developed an idea of ourselves that we were impulsive, quick to make decisions and emotional, and that this was the reason for various conflicts and difficulties in our country. We were convinced that our human temperament also translated into the temperament of state decision-making — haste, impatience and, so to speak, reckless actions.

“The past 14 years and the period of Georgian Dream’s government have demonstrated that, in reality, we have always been this way. We were forward-looking because we knew how difficult the environment in which we lived was.

“Our current situation is in no way different from Georgia’s geopolitical situation several centuries ago. Back then, too, we were at the crossroads of empires; there were exactly the same kinds of interests concerning Georgia, and we survived precisely because we were patient and had governments that acted with an understanding of our national interests.

“Today, Georgia is also succeeding for precisely this reason — it is succeeding economically and in terms of security because it has a forward-looking government that acts in the interests of its own country.

“This is the main factor behind our return to our roots — to the way the country was governed, both in domestic and foreign policy, with its own interests taken into account.

“When we speak about David Agmashenebeli, before wielding his sword, he patiently waited for the moment when he should wield it — in other words, when he needed to make a decision of a certain nature.

“So I think Georgia has restored those qualities of governance that helped us endure for centuries,” Papuasvili said.

Papuasvili said that when a government acts in accordance with the interests of its own country and people, decision-making becomes much easier.

“Confusion arises when you look at the interests of others, because you have to choose and take into account the interests of one country or another. One says something positive, another says something else, and it becomes difficult to act based on the interests of others.

“But when you know what lies at the very foundation of your country’s interests and what your red lines are, making decisions becomes easy,” Papuasvili said.