Prime Minister Gharibashvili Reflects on August War Anniversary, Blames Previous Government for Russia - Georgia War in 2008
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili spoke again about the National Movement and Mikheil Saakashvili at the Brothers' Cemetery, where he paid his respects to those who died during the August war.
He once again stated that the previous government could not avoid the war and said nothing about the aggressive steps taken by Russia.
According to Gharibashvili, he knows a lot of things that are not known to the public and he refrains from disclosing information because he "cares about the interests of the country".
"This disaster, this tragedy, and this war happened during the previous government. The previous government did nothing to prevent this war for our people and country. What did we get as a result? 20% is occupied, and the Russian army withdrew from the territory of the country in 2007.
Who should we criticize and who should we condemn? The shameful hostile force that ruled our country, as a result of their foolish policy, turned [the Russian army] around even more," Gharibashvili said.
As for the date of the start of the war, according to Gharibashvili, according to the decree of the previous government, the date of the start of the war was August 8.
15 years have passed since the war of August 2008.
On August 7, 2008, the long-standing Russian-Georgian conflict turned into an open military aggression by Russia, resulting in hundreds of casualties, ethnic cleansing, and Russia's occupation of Georgian territories.
