Europe | Georgia

Putting out more flags

Mikhail Saakashvili is using his international connections, as well as traditional tokens of authority, to put Georgia back on the map

|sukhumi, tbilisi and tskhinvali

IS HE a gallant knight, raising high the standard of his ancient land and marching forth to restore its honour—or a New York-trained lawyer who began working life as a slick yuppie with an apartment near Central Park? Both roles come easily to Mikhail Saakashvili, the 36-year-old Georgian president who wants to transform his country from a truncated state, living on past glory, into a regional power with links to the West.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Putting out more flags”

He, robot?

From the July 24th 2004 edition

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