Georgia’s new president promises to focus on uniting society – World

TBILISI, December 29. /TASS/. Georgia’s new president, Mihail Kavelashvili, said at his inauguration ceremony on December 29 that he would focus on strengthening and uniting the Georgian people.

“Every citizen of Georgia is dear to me, regardless of their opinions or political affiliation. I will be the president of everyone, my supporters and my opponents. My future efforts will be directed towards strengthening and uniting the society,” Kavelashvili said.

The Georgian people should unite for their “homeland, values ​​and rules based on mutual respect”, stressed the new Georgian leader. It was the defense of values ​​and the fight for “the very idea of ​​Georgia” that brought the country freedom, he said. Namely, people supported the history, culture, traditions, national identity and faith of Georgia, he specified.

On Sunday, Georgia’s sixth president, Mihail Kavelashvili, was inaugurated in the country’s parliament. He was elected to a five-year term on December 14. For the first time the new president of the country was elected by 300 voters and not by popular vote. Meanwhile, Kavelashvili’s predecessor, President Salome Zourabichvili, refused to recognize the result of the October 26 parliamentary election and insisted that his election was illegitimate. In parallel with the inauguration, she addressed her supporters in the courtyard of the presidential residence and then left the building. Earlier, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze repeatedly warned Zourabichvil that if she refused to leave the presidential palace after Kavelashvili’s inauguration, she would be investigated for illegal seizure of a state institution.