Saakashvili Speaks of New Defense Minister

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said, while presenting Irakli Okruashvili to the staff of the Defense Ministry late on December 15, that Okruashvili will remain at the post of Defense Minister until Georgia?s territorial integrity is restored.

Irakli Okruashvili, who was the Interior Minister, is set to become the new Defense Minister as a result of the recent government reshuffle, replacing Giorgi Baramidze. This is the third replacement of the Defense Ministry?s leadership in less than a year.

?I know that the Ministers here [in the Defense Ministry] have been replaced very often, but I promise that Irakli Okruashvili will be the Defense Minister of Georgia until the restoration of the country?s territorial integrity,? President Saakashvili said.