First of all, I want to congratulate you on the opening of the Anaklia Resort.
Today, while watching Television I noticed the announcement- "renovated Anaklia". This is not renovated Anaklia but a very new Anaklia, one of the most beautiful seaside resorts in western Georgia. It is located in the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region, where the Enguri River runs into the Black Sea near the border of Abkhazia. This beautifully renovated resort is situated in one of the finest locations in Georgia and Europe.
5 years ago, when I was surveying maritime boarders with the Georgian Coast Guard, the engine stopped operating a few hundred meters from shore. We were concerned as to what to do because we were extremely close to the so-called peace-keepers, who had already been functioning as an occupant. We were standing, observing the uncontrolled territory deciding whether to call in the helicopters, swim to the seashore or try to repair the engine ourselves when local fishermen in two boats (by the way, the local fish is some of the best tasting fish along the Black Sea coast) offered to tow us to shore.
It was the very first time that I had visited Anaklia and it was love at first sight. I want to confess, that I had not heard much about Anaklia before this. I just knew that generally it was a populated point on the map.
It is impossible not to fall in love with Anaklia. It has the best climate on the Black Sea coast. We love all of Georgia but in terms of climate on the coast, Anaklia is on the top of our list.
Today, I had an opportunity to swim in the sea with our deputies, ministers and local friends and we were convinced once more, that the sea is especially pleasurable here in Anaklia.
In addition, there is a beautiful river, the Engruri which flows into the sea, islands covered with green tropical foliage, lakes and the most beautiful lush gardens, which reminds one of a paradise.
But the main treasure of Anaklia, Samegrelo and all of Georgia are the incredibly talented, hardworking people full of enthusiasm and love that make me want to bow before them with humbleness.
I saw sparkling in the eyes of the people working here. I have visited this place now many times examining the construction process like a supervisor.
People often comment as to whether it is the President's business to be checking on construction sites, opening boarders etc. If it is not the President's business then whose business is it? This was not the previous president's business and we all know how Georgia was "built".
We are working to build and do everything we can, in our lifetime, in order to leave a better homeland to our children.
Today, here in Georgia we are opening hotels similar to those that are built in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and other big, leading countries, such as China with a population of a billion and a half. Hotels of this quality and scale are also built in United States of America... There is only one difference: They are immense and wealthy countries.
It is true that we are in a challenging situation, but we do all of this without natural resources such as gas or oil and without a billion and a half population. This means that we are a unique people with exceptional talent. We love our country and are able to build something impressive in this country, even under challenging circumstances.
After my first arrival here, I've been coming back over and over again because of the charm of the local hospitality, the cuisine and special traditions.
I remember when we were choosing construction sites, we came here at 12 o'clock, at night and we met an araba driver (a cart pulled by oxen), who was on his way from Gali and was carrying goods. We met each other exactly in these surroundings of this boulevard. When he saw a few armed people, he was frightened because burglary, robbery, seizing of goods, racketeering, kidnapping and ransom demands was an everyday reality for each inhabitant of this area.
Nowadays, the rate of crime in Georgia is one of the lowest in all of Europe. Inside Georgia, the lowest rate of crime is in Samegrelo, because Mengrelian people love order. You can feel that we are part of Europe especially in Samegrelo.
Our enemy is listening attentively and not from far away, but from only few hundred meters. I'm sure that they are sitting eating porridge of rolled oats and peas, (which is mostly stolen from soldiers by officers) and they look with sad eyes - maybe they wonder why they were transferred to the seaside, who are they protecting, from whom do they protect the vacant surroundings, the question is what they are doing in the middle of paradise and by whom were they assigned as the defenders of a beautiful seaside paradise.
I want to bring your attention to one issue- why wasn't Anaklia a resort before. There is very simple answer - first it had a Soviet military base, then a Russian military base. Before this, in previous centuries there was a military base of the Russian Empire and then Turkey and so on.
During the time of the Soviet Union, the base should have guarded the Soviet Union from NATO, because the boarder of NATO was the crossing boarder of the Soviet Union and Turkey.
Today they have built a wall on another side, so that ethnic Georgians, Estonians, Ukrainians and Jews are unable to return to their own motherland.
Of course, in such situations, when there are tanks and rockets, it is possible that many countries dug entrenchments here and could have deployed soldiers every hundred meters, bring artillery and mine the whole seaside- in a word, we could have provided deaf guard in order to avoid another attack from the enemy.
We chose another way and I think we made correct decision- to build 5 and 7- star- hotels instead of entrenchments, and the best aqua park in Europe instead of mines, this huge amphitheater with a disco instead of new military parts; As well as new beautiful football squares, where new sport complexes will be developed; a new spa resort, where sulfur water is provided.
When I became the President 120 thousand tourists visited Georgia. Last year we had 2 million tourists, this year the number has risen to 3 million, next year we will have 4 million tourists, while in the following year the number will rise to 5 million.
According to the plan of modernization 2015 approximately 7-8 million tourists will visit Georgia. There will be several hotels with a thousand rooms in 2013, but before there was nothing here and this territory was unusable even for the poor invader soldiers. These hotels (1000 rooms) will attract around 200,000 during the next two years. This quantity far exceeds that of the former leader of autonomic republic of Adjaria Aslan Abashidze. I'm planning for us reach high levels of tourists in Anaklia, 400,000 people in 2015.
Anaklia will be one of the greatest sea resorts in the Black Sea Region.
A new road has started to be built this year - Anaklia-Poti. This new road will make it possible to cover the distance between two towns in 15 minutes by car and 50 minutes by car from Anaklia to Batumi.
I think Anaklia is at least as good if not a much better resort as San-trope or Nice.
Georgia always had a lot of problems, because of several enemies and I'm afraid we might have the same problems in the future. We know from the history books, that Georgia has had many betrayers. We watch them even today on TV and we will probably see them tomorrow. But what is most important is that Georgia has always had many heroes. In spite of the betrayers and terrible facts of history, Georgia has always been raised from the ashes.
Betrayers and invaders come and go, but the territory of Georgia, Kolkheti and Lazeti has always been here and always will be.
Mongolians, Ottomans and Persians always tried to occupy Georgia during past centuries. Many great countries have been erased from the world map, but we have very good relationships with many countries, this is our history. All of these countries have been changed but Georgia continues to exist as a paradise on the earth.
My dears, we have of course great plans and common sense. Our main goal is Peace!
Let's go watch the fireworks, but before we do I want to tell our enemies, do not make ready your military equipment, because it's just fireworks.
The Fireworks will start after the well-known pianist - Khatia Buniatishvili -first crosses the new bridge and plays the piano.
Maybe our enemy doesn't care about hundreds or thousands of their own citizens will become angry when they hear nice songs, and see fireworks. They are terribly afraid of freedom and progress.
We can build camps. They can come and burn them down. We can rebuild again with better youth centers, universities, roads, airports and a better future for Georgia. This is our distinction.
On the other side, there is different ideology, but on our side there is civilization - ancient civilization, real, ancient Kolkhetian Europe, ancient love and ancient talent.
We always win because of our talent, education, hardworking, enthusiasm, optimism and faith of a better future.
God bless Georgia!
God bless our future!