Mikheil Kavelashvili: Georgia cannot be imagined without Abkhazia and Samachablo

It is impossible to imagine Georgia without Abkhazia and Samachablo, Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili said in a speech marking the 18th anniversary of the August 2008 war, according to Report's Georgian bureau.

"There is no reality in which anyone could imagine Georgia without Abkhazia and Samachablo. Everyone in the world must understand that no Georgian citizen, under any circumstances, will allow these territories to exist separately from the country. This is an axiom that no one can deny," he said.

According to Kavelashvili, the authorities are pursuing a targeted policy of peaceful reconciliation and coexistence within a unified state.

"For centuries, we have lived together with our Abkhaz and Ossetian brothers and sisters and built the state together. We believe that we share common values... Our goal is to overcome the consequences of these tragic events peacefully, and I am confident that this will certainly happen. Georgia will be united, and all its residents will have a worthy place in the state," Kavelashvili said.

Kavelashvili also honored the memory of service members and civilians who died in the 2008 war (the Russo-Georgian war - Ed.) and expressed condolences to their families. He noted that as a result of the war, Georgia lost territories and villages, while people suffered from the consequences of the occupation, a situation that continues to this day.