Ruling party founder highlights country’s “tangible” progress resulting from “continuous” peace

Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Honorary Chair and founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said the country would not have had any “tangible” progress if it were not for the “continuous” peace that the Georgian Dream Government was maintaining through “great efforts”.

In his address at a campaign meeting in Georgia’s western city of Zugdidi, Ivanishvili noted that “peace and proper economic development” of the country should become the basis for fulfilling the long-awaited dream of seeing the country reunified.

“The only way to do this is through mutual reconciliation, mutual forgiveness and restoration of trust [with Abkhazians and Ossetians]. Of course, the steps we have taken are one thing, however, the most important thing is how much the current reality creates the possibility of restoring [the country’s] territorial integrity”, Ivanishvili said.

He added that on the backdrop of the “dynamism” of the current events and processes in the wider region, the possibility of restoring territorial integrity might arise “at any time”, and further pointed out that “however, we need to be alert and ready for this”.

“In such a case, it will be necessary to bring the [country’s] territorial arrangement in line with the existing reality and reflect it in the Constitution. This is one of the most important factors why the Georgian Dream party should win with a constitutional majority [in the upcoming elections]. Otherwise, the collective United National Movement opposition will oppose all this as well as any [other] interest of our country”, Ivanishvili continued.

The ruling party founder claimed that the collective UNM opposition was dragging the country into war again.

“The collective United National Movement, divided into non-governmental organisations and four political entities, continues its agent network activities and acts against the interests of its own country. Eliminating the constant tension in the country, achieving long-term stability and peace is possible only under a healthy political system, when citizens can choose between good and better”, Ivanishvili continued.

“Our team has the experience, ability and, most importantly, the political will to ensure peace, stability and prosperity in the country. We can, together with the Georgian people, logically complete the European path we started and become a member of the European Union while preserving our dignity. In response, the agent network of external forces wants more war, chaos and poverty, leading to the destruction of the country”, he alleged.

“Advising” opponents to “look at” the country’s rankings in international indexes when they criticised the moves of the GD authorities, Ivanishvili highlighted: 

• According to the 2024 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes of the Atlantic Council, Georgia ranks among the top five globally in terms of 10-year progress in prosperity, and ranks first worldwide for 11-year progress.
• Georgia is also among the top ten in Europe for freedom from government interference in judicial justice. Do you remember how court rulings were manipulated before [2012]? Today, government influence is so minimal that Georgia ranks in the top ten in Europe for judicial independence.
• In the Open Budget Index, Georgia still ranks first among 125 countries globally, among nations with full transparency. Do you remember when a political leader [former President] Mikheil Saakashvili treated the budget as his personal pocketbook. 
• With 11 years of progress in reducing government violence, Georgia ranks third worldwide. Do you recall the times when people were being mistreated and killed in the streets [under the UNM leadership]? Today, Georgia is third globally in protecting its population from government violence, an achievement we can certainly be proud of.
• In terms of civil liberties, Georgia ranks ninth globally, third in Eurasia, and first in Europe after 11 years of progress. Free citizens are driving businesses and bringing success to the country. Look at the incredible progress we have achieved in this area.
• According to the World Bank, in 2024, the level of international poverty in Georgia will drop to a new historic low, and after 12 years of improvement, Georgia will be among the top five in the world. 

He stressed the International Monetary Fund has published a forecast for Georgia. “This highly respected institution released a long-term projection of the global economy until 2030. In this ten-year forecast, Georgia ranks among the top three in the world in three key areas.”

According to the ten-year growth rate of real GDP per capita, Georgia is projected to be among the top three globally by 2029. Moreover, we are the undisputed leader in economic growth across Europe during this period”, he said. 

The Honorary Chair highlighted Georgia's GDP per capita, in US dollars, was expected to exceed $12,900 by 2029, and added “if the current growth rate continues, it will surpass $14,000 by 2030, which would likely qualify Georgia for high-income country status according to World Bank classifications. By 2029, Georgia’s economy, measured by purchasing power parity, will be larger than that of six EU member states”. 

Ivanishvili further highlighted the research conducted by IPSOS, a multinational market research and consulting firm headquartered in Paris, which last week showed that 61 percent of respondents were viewing the domestic judiciary as being “very good or mostly good” in terms of independence, claiming that the outcome was “higher” than the average confidence indicator in European countries, which was about 55 percent.

He added that “internal and external enemies” should not be allowed to destroy the country, and further pointed out that they had not understood that “no matter how much they try to mislead the public, there are no two Georgias as Georgia is the only country whose citizens want to become a member of the European family with peace, dignity and prosperity, while preserving its own values”.