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10:27 A.M. (Local)
PRESIDENT SAAKASHVILI: I'll say a few words in English. I want to welcome you, Mr. President, for this historic occasion. You know, right now we have in the streets of Tbilisi, as they are telling me, more than 150,000 people assembled, and I can tell you, no event in the history of this country has ever assembled anything close to these numbers. It shows the importance of this visit.
I can tell you, and you were seeing, yesterday crowds -- unfortunately, I didn't see them on the networks -- I mean, there were CNN and the others -- but they were there and we could see them, the crowds along the airport. And of course, it was very genuine. This is not North Korea here; you cannot tell people to go out unless -- if they don't feel like it. (Laughter.) And it was a very -- I mean, for me, it was something very emotional. The posters they made were very emotional.
You know, outside this building, 18 months ago, also 100,000 Georgians came in defense of democracy with a dream of living free. And in the weeks and months after the Rose Revolution, no country stood closer to Georgia than the United States, whether it was diplomatic support, economic aid, security assistance, or --, the United States was there. For this support, the Georgian people will be eternally grateful.
So I once again, want to welcome Mr. President to Georgia. The partnership between the U.S. and Georgia is about more, and we should make it very clear the strategic interests -- more than oil pipelines, more than any kind of economic or military cooperation; it's about shared values and our shared belief in freedom and in democracy.
And President Bush is a man of vision who believes in the triumph of liberty over forces of tyranny. I know he was also inspired by our journey toward democracy. President Bush is in Georgia because we agree that free people cannot rest while tyranny exists. We know that our liberty must be defended from those who seek to extinguish it. And of course, when we are together, that's much more hopeful and much more efficient.
That's why over 800 troops are in Iraq -- Georgian troops side-by-side with the Americans, and Iraqis and many others, to defeat those who live only to kill, to enslave, to frighten people. That is why Georgians are in Afghanistan, and NATO-led missions, and that is why we appreciate the U.S. support for our NATO aspirations, just like the U.S. supported Ukraine on its NATO aspirations.
The United States supports the total integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders. We appreciate this support and recognize our responsibilities. We will peacefully resolve our disputes with our long-suffering South Ossetian and Abkhaz citizens and the territories. We will widen and deepen our democratic reforms to better the lives of Georgians. And we seek friendly relations with all our neighbors. And we know we can count on the support of the United States in all these vital tasks.
Mr. President, you are a decisive and visionary leader. Georgia is humbled and honored that you have come to visit our small country, but great land. We Georgians have a belief that guests are a gift from God, and you are a most treasured guest. Mr. President, welcome.