03 May 2004 15:26
Georgian president says Ajarian leader still has "chance to come to his senses"
[Presenter] Time is not on Aslan Abashidze's side. The Georgian president today made another statement
concerning the Ajarian leader at Orkhevi [near Tbilisi] during a visit to the base of the 25th Batumi Brigade and
members of the Internal Troops and the so-called rapid-reaction detachment trained by [retired Russian General Yuriy]
Netkachev. The president thanked military personnel who have left Ajaria and announced that he was not planning a
military conflict with Ajaria. He made it clear, however, that if Abashidze did not disarm, he would face serious
consequences. He has nine more days to do it.
[Passage omitted: Saakashvili greets servicemen and tells them that he is proud of them]
[Saakashvili, speaking to journalists] Just two days ago these people were in the service of the local government.
Today they are already in Tbilisi. Things like this are happening every day. [Aleksandre] Davitadze, the commander of
the vigilante group, has left. That is why he [Aslan Abashidze] is trying to provoke us. He is losing forces every day
and he cannot get reinforcements from anywhere to replace them.
In this situation, we should remain calm and as constructive as possible. For a certain time, for a few days, we
should even leave him a chance to come to his senses and start to cooperate.
It is absolutely clear that people are suffering because the summer season has effectively been wrecked in Ajaria.
People are suffering not only in Ajaria but also in the rest of Georgia. I am also planning to go on holiday to Ajaria
in the summer, together with my fellow citizens, and I want to have a holiday in conditions of peace and calm.
[Gela Bezhuashvili, Georgian defence minister, interviewed] The 25th Brigade of the Defence Ministry will be based
here. Members of the Internal Troops and the special-purpose detachment who have left Ajaria will also be here. The
commander-in-chief will inspect everyone and everything and see what the conditions are like. We will brief him on what
he are doing to accommodate these people and allow them to continue their service.
[Giorgi Baramidze, Georgian interior minister, interviewed] Above all, we should stay calm and not rise to the bait.
The terrorist act that Netkachev committed on Abashidze's orders was indeed an attempt to provoke us. We should try
to make sure that Abashidze's criminal regime is sapped of its strength.
[Rustavi-2 TV] |
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