Mikhail Saakashvili is a very extraordinary personality in world politics. Some admire him, others despise him. Some believe that he is a wonderful politician who has achieved great success in his country, so these people are happy to see Saakashvili in Odessa as the governor of the region. Some recall that in his native Georgia, the ex-president has faced several charges. However, we will not judge Mishiko, and the biography of Saakashvili given in this article will only help us learn more about this person.
Origin, studies
The future president of Georgia was born in its capital on December 21, 1967. His father, a physician by education, left the family before the birth of his son. Mother - a professor of history, occupied an important place in the educational sphere of Georgia. The mother and her new husband, as well as Mikhail's maternal uncle, were involved in the upbringing of the future president. His relatives were engaged in various activities, for example, his uncle was a diplomat and worked at the UN. Mikhail has paternal brothers.
At school, Mikhail achieved good results and in 1984 he graduated with a gold medal. At the same time, hestudied foreign languages, and also played basketball, swimming, music.
Where else did Saakashvili study? After school, Mikhail studied international law at the Kiev University. T. Shevchenko. There is information that in 1988 he was expelled from the educational institution and he was able to recover only after he served in the special border troops of the USSR in 1989-1990. In 1992, after graduating from the faculty, he returned to Georgia and worked there as a legal adviser. After receiving a grant and went to the United States, where he studied at several universities and received a master's degree in law. Did an internship and worked in Europe.
Political activities
In 1995, Saakashvili returned to his native Georgia and was elected to parliament there. For several years he held various positions, led the parliamentary faction of the party in power. In 2000, he represented Georgia in PACE until he was appointed Minister of Justice. In 2001, he resigned due to disagreements with the Georgian government, which he accused of corruption. At the same time, he created the political party "National Movement", which was initially in opposition. Since 2002, he has chaired the Legislative Assembly of Tbilisi.
Rise to power
It all started with the fact that the opposition blocs, including the organization created by Saakashvili, refused to recognize the results of the parliamentary elections of November 2, 2003. The future president also took an active part in the protests that had begun and, as eyewitnesses say, renderedsignificant influence on the masses: people followed him. However, Saakashvili's biography is replete with episodes of his presence at various rallies. Eventually, protesters holding roses, encouraged by Saakashvili's speeches, occupied the parliament building.
The Rose Revolution happened because many were convinced that the last parliamentary elections were rigged. President Eduard Shevardnadze was forced to resign, and new presidential elections were scheduled for early 2004. As a result, more than 95% of voters voted for Saakashvili's candidacy.
Presidency
Having taken the presidency, Saakashvili received a country with a lot of problems in various areas in his administration. Some territories refused to obey the Tbilisi authorities or even declared their independence. Saakashvili began to pursue a policy of restoring the territorial integrity of the country, and in the first years of his rule he achieved certain results.
Unemployment rose in Georgia under Mikheil Saakashvili's presidency, but GDP grew significantly, and the country's business and investment climate also improved, according to World Bank estimates. According to some sources, as well as according to official statements by the Georgian authorities themselves, the level of corruption in the country significantly decreased between 2003 and 2009, but not everyone is inclined to trust this information.
During his reign, Russian-Georgian relations. To a large extent, this was facilitated by the fact that Russia supported the separatists of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. At the same time, Saakashvili sought to make Georgia a member of NATO and the European Union. The entire biography of Saakashvili is a long story of his studies, and then reforms in his native Georgia, which ultimately yielded results.
New Challenges
In November 2007 mass demonstrations of people dissatisfied with Saakashvili's policy began. The President eventually gave the order to disperse the protesters, as a result of which many people were injured. Mikheil Saakashvili resigned, but was re-elected to the presidency. This time he was supported by approximately 53% of voters.
In 2012, Saakashvili's party loses the parliamentary elections and goes into opposition. In Georgia, various accusations were made against some politicians before, and from that moment on, the country began to seriously talk about the possibility of criminal prosecution of certain people, in particular, those who are the President's associates. Many of them left the country, and in October 2013, a few days before the end of his presidential term, Mikheil Saakashvili himself went abroad.
The Tie Incident
Saakashvili's biography contains one episode that deserves special attention - this is a well-known case with a tie. On August 16, 2008 correspondents of the BBC media corporation interviewed the President of Georgia. At that moment, Saakashvili received a call on his mobile phone, to which he answered. A few seconds later, an expression of alarm appeared on his face, andWith his free hand he took his tie and began to chew on it. As it turned out, the journalists' camera was turned on and captured this episode, which was shown on the news the same day.
It is not known who called Mikheil Saakashvili at that moment and what was discussed in this telephone conversation, however, many associate the causes of this incident with the conflict in South Ossetia. Experts note that chewing a tie in the presence of foreign journalists indicates that the Georgian leader has lost control over his behavior. Saakashvili himself said that worries about his country can force a person to swallow his own tie.
Outside Georgia
After leaving Georgia, Saakashvili began teaching in the United States. At the same time, he visited the Euromaidan and spoke there with support for the pro-European course, along the way accusing the Russian authorities of the raider seizure of Ukraine. After the overthrow of Viktor Yanukovych, Saakashvili continues to maintain contacts with the new Ukrainian authorities, which causes a lot of criticism from Georgian politicians. Thus, the Prime Minister of Georgia called the ex-president an adventurer and warned Ukrainian politicians against communicating with him.
However, in Georgia itself, an investigation is underway, in which in 2014 the former president was called to testify, but he never returned to his homeland. In the future, criminal proceedings are also opened against the former president - he is accused of unlawful dispersaldemonstrators in 2007 and in other illegal acts related to corruption. In addition, Saakashvili is accused of trying to organize Euromaidan in Tbilisi itself.
Saakashvili in Odessa
In 2015 Saakashvili's political career began in Ukraine. In February, it became known about his appointment as a freelance adviser to the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko. A little later, Saakashvili received Ukrainian citizenship, and in May he was appointed to the post of head of the Odessa regional administration. This appointment caused a wide resonance both in political circles and among ordinary people.
According to Poroshenko, who introduced the new head of the Odessa region, Mikheil Saakashvili, nationality does not matter - abilities are more important. After all, in this post it is necessary to carry out an effective fight against corruption, deal with issues of protecting the rights of citizens, ensure transparency and efficiency in the work of various state bodies - such tasks were assigned by the president to Saakashvili. The governor promised to use the full potential of Odessa to the maximum.
Private life
Mikhail Saakashvili is married to a citizen of the Netherlands Sandra Roelofs, they have two sons - Nikoloz and Eduard. Saakashvili's wife, before meeting him, worked for the international humanitarian organization Red Cross and is known for her ability to sing songs in Georgian. The family occupies an important place in the life of Mikheil Saakashvili.
Saakashvili himself, in addition to his native Georgian language, speaks five more foreign languages. In addition, he doesmountaineering and in 2013 climbed Mount Kazbek of the Greater Caucasus Range, the height of which is 5047 m. This person has a large number of awards received by him in the CIS countries and Europe, and also has several honorary titles. Saakashvili's wife does charity work.
Of course, Mikheil Saakashvili is the best of the best and, as is often the case with such people, he also has his ill-wishers and enemies. We all make mistakes, and he devoted most of his life to his work, so he had more chances to make a mistake than others. Today Saakashvili is the governor of the Odessa region, perhaps he will be able to restore order here as well?
