UN General Assembly
2016

It is my honour to address the General Assembly. Georgia has promoted the values of the United Nations since regaining its independence 25 years ago. In return, the United Nations has served as a partner for us — one of the oldest nations in the world — in developing a free and democratic State. Twenty-five years ago, few of us could have imagined that today Georgia would have transformed itself from a country ravaged by civil war into a dynamic European democracy. We have made great progress in building strong and effective State institutions; ensuring the freedom of civil society, the media and markets; and on social cohesion and the rule of law. And we are proud to be ranked as the fifth-freest economy in the world, thus ensuring openness and integration into the global market and equal opportunities for all people interested in doing business in Georgia.