mikheil saakashvili - mount kazbeg - 2013-09-05

President Mikheil Saakashvili on top of Mount Kazbek (Kazbegi). (President’s Facebook page.)

TBILISI, DFWatch–President Mikheil Saakashvili has gone for another mountain walk, this time to conquer Mount Kazbeg, one of the highest peaks in the Caucasus, reaching 5 047 meters above sea level.

According to the president’s administration, Saakashvili acceptedan invitation from Mountain Guides Association and went on the trip in order to popularize tourism in Georgia.

Walking with the president on the three day trip were MP Goga Khachidze from the United National Movement and the Russian Andrey Illarionov. The group walked fifteen kilometers from Gergety Church to the meteorological station.

A storm interrupted the trip at 4 500 meters’ height.


“The president participated in a hiking trip in order to promote tourist sites in Georgia. During his term as president our country increased number of tourists from 100 000 to 5 million,” the president’s administration informs. “However, Mikheil Saakashvili thinks that in terms of future development of infrastructure and appropriate advertising, Georgia is ready to host 20 million tourists, which will raise the income of every Georgian immeasurably.”

This was the second trip for the last few weeks that the president participated in. He earlier went to Lake Tobavarchkhili for three days with members of the UNM.

Watch video of the trip.