Welcome.
We quite rarely decorate someone with the Presidential Order of Excellence.
After discussions with different influential people we have decided to decorate certain successful and excellent representatives of different spheres of the society.
First of all, I would like decorate the truly merited representatives of our civil service. It was normally accepted to give this award in older aged individuals, as a rule, to the older people who have gained immense experience in life. Yet our civil service is very young.
We celebrate the excellent holiday of Giorgoba today. The battle of Georgia resembles the battle of Saint George against the evil emperor. The Emperor looked much more experienced, much more physically fit, but Saint George stood strong morally and was much more superior spiritually than the emperor.
The same is true about our diplomacy and the state service in general.
Are you aware that we have conducted the most difficult negotiations on the Russian membership into the World Trade Organization, during which we had been confronted by the propaganda apparatus with lots of money?
In spite of this, with the efforts of our young diplomats, another side has made a very important decision for Georgia, according to which international monitors will stand on the internationally recognized borders of Georgia for the first time since the restoration of our independence.
This is truly a huge victory for our diplomacy. For our diplomats this is one of the biggest achievements since Independence Day among those that I can remember. Despite huge influence and difficulties, this team has fought to the end, just like the team which fought for the resolution which the European Parliament adopted. The document adopted by the European Parliament, I can say without exaggeration, is similarly historic for Georgia. This is the resolution that will be remembered by historians as a courageous example of our work to safeguard our international positions. The international law has a decisive significance for a small country.
That is why I would like decorate the excellent representatives of Georgian diplomacy Sergi Kapanadze, Tamar Kovziridze, Tornike Gordadze and Salome Samadashvili with the Presidential Order of Excellence.
When we talk about what the basis is for the success and experience of these young diplomats, I think it would be appropriate to say that it is the merit of the great school, which we went through not only in terms of diplomacy, but also in terms of education, in terms of sharing the values of Europe and that of civilization in general. Few persons could always have been found in Georgia, who transcended the margins of a single person and had turned into institutions of a kind.
I deem that Gela Charkviani is the kind of Georgian, who has truly become an institution for any person.
It is a great honor for us to decorate him with this order.
Bakur Kvezereli is present here, who was the youngest Georgian Minister, the most burdened and with the most difficult schedule. The working day of Bakuri lasted from 9 am to 3 am, which is very hard to cope with for a person of any age. He was tasked with the most difficult job, but achieved fairly good results in the issue of vintage. You should always thank a person for what he does for the Georgian state and on behalf of the Georgian state.
I visited the technical university a while ago. It is very important for me that scientific and technical progress is continuing in Georgia. It is important as well that people of all ages and experience, different origins and backgrounds are to be credited for this progress. I want to say that we are now preoccupied the most by the reconstruction and the fact that a new method of producing concrete has been invented in Georgia, first it makes the work cost effective, and second, it makes the production of very high quality concrete possible. The associate professor of the Akaki Tsereteli State University, Vakhtang Kankava is the person who has invented this unique method. If anything can match the word “Excellent” then it is Mr. Vakhtang’s work.
What has significantly changed during the past years is that Georgia is associated with many positive events in a great number of countries around us. In spite of the war, other negative influence and propaganda (on which they spend a lot of money) Georgia is a very popular country in Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, among the greatest part of Russian intelligentsia and in other countries of our neighborhood, where Georgians are very popular people. One of the most popular Georgians, a bright star, for instance, in Ukraine and in all of these countries is our famous singer Nino Katamadze, who we all also decorate with the Presidential Order of Excellence.