TBILISI, May 26 – Georgia’s leaders used Independence Day to highlight the importance of sovereignty.
The main ceremony was held on Freedom Square in central Tbilisi, where President Mikheil Kavelashvili, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, cabinet members and MPs attended. Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III and other clergy were also present, along with diplomats, including EU Ambassador Paweł Herczyński.
Military conscripts took their oath during the ceremony before joining the Defense Forces. Similar oath-taking ceremonies were also planned at 12 historic locations across Georgia, while military equipment and weapons were displayed in 21 cities.
Georgia marks Independence Day every year on May 26. On that date in 1918, the National Council of Georgia adopted the Act of Independence in Tbilisi, ending 117 years under the Russian Empire and creating the Democratic Republic of Georgia.
This year’s official speeches strongly linked statehood with Christianity. Georgia is also marking 1,700 years since Christianity was declared the state religion.
Kavelashvili said May 26 is the date that defines the Georgian nation’s identity and future. He said Georgia survived centuries of hardship because it protected its faith, identity, traditions and native language. He also praised the Georgian Orthodox Church for preserving national identity, historical memory and spirituality.
The president said independence must not be treated as something secured once and for all.
“Independence is not a given granted once and forever,” Kavelashvili said. He added that Georgians must be firm, united and decide the country’s future only according to Georgia’s own interests.
Kobakhidze also placed sovereignty at the center of his speech. He said 35 years have passed since Georgia restored state independence, and that the country is still walking what he called a 40-year path of Moses.
According to the prime minister, every patriotic Georgian can be proud that Georgia is “independent and sovereign as never before.” He said stronger independence and sovereignty had allowed Georgia to protect its faith, preserve peace and continue on a path of development.
Kobakhidze said Christianity became an inseparable part of Georgia’s national identity in 326, shaping Georgian culture and helping the country survive while empires around it disappeared.
He also thanked the late Patriarch Ilia II, saying his work revived the Georgian Orthodox Church and strengthened its role. Kobakhidze addressed Shio III and wished that his tenure would mark another important era in the Church’s history.
Papuashvili used his speech to say that Georgia’s state and Church cannot be separated in the country’s history.
He said the fight for independence never stopped in Georgian history and that this force passed from generation to generation. Papuashvili said Georgia’s two pillars are the independent state and the autocephalous Church.
He also warned against what he called a new “golden chain,” saying some still want Georgia to follow other people’s rules and give up its own path.
“This will not happen,” Papuashvili said.
Patriarch Shio III used his address to speak about the meaning of freedom. He said freedom is often falsely presented in the modern world as the rejection of all limits.
True freedom, he said, means responsibility, faith in God, inner strength, honesty and moral life. He said Georgia’s independence should be based on love of God and homeland, justice, peace, unity and tolerance.
Defense Minister Irakli Chikovani also addressed the ceremony, saying national policy based on national interests is decisive at a time when attempts to erase traditional values and identity are visible. He said he was confident Georgia would defend “homeland, language and faith.”
Opposition groups are expected to hold their own events later on Tuesday, including a planned evening march in Tbilisi.
Read more: Tbilisi preparing for May 26 standoff
