|
Georgian President Praises US Freedom Agenda
The conventional wisdom is that the U.S. enjoys little international support as we vigorously wage war on terror and deter aggression. But we have fast friends among those who know freedom has a price.In an underreported visit to the White House this week, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili delivered a moving tribute to U.S. efforts to promote and defend freedom. "Your freedom agenda does indeed work," he told President Bush Wednesday. "You can see it in Georgia. We are seeing it in Iraq. And please stay there. Please fight there until the end. "We will stay with you there," Saakashvili promised, "whatever it takes, because your success in Iraq is success for countries like Georgia. It's a success for every individual that loves freedom, every individual that wants security, to live in a more secure world for himself, herself or their children." Unlike America's many critics in Europe, Saakashvili has actually risked his skin for his own people's liberty. He resigned his powerful post as justice minister in 2001 because corruption engulfed the Shevardnadze government. He then led a wave of anti-government demonstrations that became the Rose Revolution. We also now have a more dependable friend north of the border. After meeting with Bush Thursday, new Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper noted that in the wake of the arrest of 17 alleged terrorist plotters in Ontario last month, "it's been brought home to all of us that we face exactly the same kind of security threats and are defending exactly the same kinds of values." Asked about North Korea's provocative long-range rocket tests, Harper commented: "I think it should be obvious when we look at this kind of threat why the United States and others would want to have a modern and flexible defense system." America's friends and allies are on the rise. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel supports our efforts in Iraq. Japan and the U.S. adversaries in the bloodiest war in history are closer than ever. India, the world's most populous democracy, was practically a Soviet ally during the Cold War. Now we enjoy the best ties with India ever. Saakashvili said that when he stood next to Bush in Freedom Square in Tbilisi last year, "I felt like... it was vindication for all those Georgians, including my family members, who perished in the Gulag, who died fighting for their freedom, their liberty, their independence." As more countries see that freedom is never free, America's boldness in fighting the war on terror is being vindicated too. Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-07-07 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=158527 |