Mikheil Saakashvili facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mikheil Saakashvili
მიხეილ სააკაშვილი Міхеіл Саакашвілі
Saakashvili in 2017
3rd President of Georgia
In office 20 January 2008 – 17 November 2013
Prime Minister	Lado Gurgenidze Grigol Mgaloblishvili Nika Gilauri Vano Merabishvili Bidzina Ivanishvili
Preceded by	Nino Burjanadze (acting)
Succeeded by	Giorgi Margvelashvili
In office 25 January 2004 – 25 November 2007
Prime Minister	Zurab Zhvania Himself (acting) Zurab Nogaideli Giorgi Baramidze (acting) Lado Gurgenidze
Preceded by	Nino Burjanadze (acting)
Succeeded by	Nino Burjanadze (acting)
10th Governor of Odesa Oblast
In office 30 May 2015 – 9 November 2016
President	Petro Poroshenko
Prime Minister	Arseniy Yatsenyuk Volodymyr Groysman
Preceded by	Ihor Palytsia
Succeeded by	Solomiia Bobrovska (acting)
Advisor to the President of Ukraine
In office 13 February 2015 – 9 November 2016
President	Petro Poroshenko
Preceded by	position established
Succeeded by	Maria Gaidar
Chairman of the Executive Committee of The National Reform Council of Ukraine
In office 7 May 2020 – 27 September 2021
President	Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Preceded by	position established
Succeeded by	position abolished
Minister of Justice of Georgia
In office 12 October 2000 – 19 September 2001
President	Eduard Shevardnadze
Prime Minister	Giorgi Arsenishvili
Preceded by	John Khetsuriani
Succeeded by	Roland Giligashvili
Prime Minister of Georgia
Acting
In office 3 February 2005 – 17 February 2005
President	Himself
Preceded by	Zurab Zhvania
Succeeded by	Zurab Noghaideli
Member of the Parliament of Georgia
In office 6 November 2001 – 22 November 2002
In office 25 November 1995 – 2 March 2001
Chairman of the Tbilisi City Assembly
In office 4 November 2001 – 2003
Chair of Union of Citizens Faction in the Parliament of Georgia
In office 15 September 1998 – 20 November 1999
In office 27 November 1999 – 10 October 2000
Chair of Legal Issues Committee in the Parliament of Georgia
In office 27 November 1995 – 15 September 1998
Chairman of the United National Movement
In office 2001 – 24 March 2019
Preceded by	position established
Succeeded by	Grigol Vashadze
Chairman of the Movement of New Forces
Incumbent
Assumed office 23 February 2017
Preceded by	position established
Honorary Chairman of the United National Movement
Incumbent
Assumed office 24 March 2019
Preceded by	position established
Personal details
Born	(1967-12-21) 21 December 1967 (age 57) Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union
Citizenship	Soviet (1967–1991) Georgian (1991–2015; 2021–present) Ukrainian (2015–2017; 2019–present) Stateless (2017–2019)
Political party	Movement of New Forces (2017–present) United National Movement (2001–present) Union of Citizens of Georgia (1995–2001)
Spouse	Sandra Roelofs ​ (m. 1994)​
Children	4
Education	National University of Kyiv Columbia University George Washington University International Institute of Human Rights
Signature

Mikheil Saakashvili (Georgian: მიხეილ სააკაშვილი; Ukrainian: Міхеіл Саакашвілі; born 21 December 1967) is a politician and lawyer from Georgia and Ukraine. He served as the third president of Georgia for two terms. His time as president was from January 25, 2004, to November 17, 2013.

Early Life and Education

Mikheil Saakashvili was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, on December 21, 1967. At that time, Georgia was part of the Soviet Union. His father, Nikoloz Saakashvili, is a doctor. His mother, Giuli Alasania, is a historian and university lecturer.

During his university years, he completed a short military service. This was in 1989–1990 with the Soviet Border Troops. He was stationed at the Boryspil International Airport in Ukraine. In 1992, Saakashvili graduated from the Institute of International Relations. He studied international law at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv. While studying there, he became friends with Petro Poroshenko, who later became President of Ukraine. Saakashvili also took part in a student protest in October 1990. This event was known as the "Revolution on Granite".

After university, Saakashvili worked briefly in Georgia. He was a human rights officer for the government. He then received a special scholarship from the United States. He earned a master's degree in law from Columbia Law School in 1994. The next year, he took classes at Columbia University and George Washington University. In 1995, he also received a diploma from the International Institute of Human Rights in France.

Political Career in Georgia

Saakashvili started his political journey in Georgia in 1995. He became a member of parliament. He also served as the Minister of Justice under President Eduard Shevardnadze. Later, Saakashvili joined the opposition. He created a political party called the United National Movement.

In 2003, Saakashvili became a key leader of the opposition. He claimed that the 2003 Georgian parliamentary election results were unfair. He led large protests, which led to President Shevardnadze stepping down. This peaceful change was called the Rose Revolution. Because of his important role, Saakashvili was elected President in 2004. He was re-elected in 2008.

However, his party lost the 2012 Georgian parliamentary election. Saakashvili could not run for a third term as president. This was due to Georgia's constitution. The 2013 Georgian presidential election was won by an opposition candidate.

His Time as President

As president, Saakashvili made many changes. He reformed the police, military, economy, and government. A new Patrol Police department was created. The old police force was replaced to stop corruption. Government spending was reduced by getting rid of some ministries. The military budget also increased to strengthen the country's defense. The government had a strict policy against crime.

Saakashvili appointed Kakha Bendukidze as the Minister of Economy. Bendukidze worked to make the economy more open and privatize businesses. Between 2003 and 2013, Georgia's economy grew by 70%. The average income per person nearly tripled. However, poverty did not decrease much. About a quarter of the population was still living in poverty when his second term ended.

The World Bank recognized Georgia for making business easier. It ranked the country 8th globally for "ease of doing business." It also called Georgia "the leading economic reformer in the world."

During his presidency, conflicts continued in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. These conflicts became much worse in 2008. Russia openly supported the separatists in these regions. Saakashvili led Georgia through the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. The war lasted five days and ended with a ceasefire. This agreement was arranged by the French president Nicolas Sarkozy. After the war, Georgia lost control of these disputed areas. Russia then recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent. Georgia responded by ending its diplomatic ties with Russia.

Saakashvili's economic policies included removing the minimum wage. He also reduced the number of government workers. Corporate income tax was lowered from 20% to 15%. Dividend tax also went down from 10% to 5%. In 2009, Forbes magazine said Georgia had one of the lowest tax burdens in the world.

Georgia faced several political challenges during his time. In 2007, large protests happened. People demanded Saakashvili's resignation. He left Georgia shortly after the 2013 presidential election.

After Being President

In 2014, Saakashvili faced legal issues in Georgia. He was later sentenced to prison in 2018 while he was not in the country. Saakashvili continued to lead his party from abroad. He said the Georgian government was using the legal system for political reasons.

Saakashvili supported Ukraine's Euromaidan movement. On May 30, 2015, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko made Saakashvili the Governor of Odesa Oblast. He also became a Ukrainian citizen. Because of rules about having two citizenships in Georgia, he lost his Georgian citizenship. On November 7, 2016, Saakashvili resigned as governor. He blamed President Poroshenko for allowing corruption in Odesa and Ukraine. A few days later, he announced he would start a new political party called Movement of New Forces.

On July 26, 2017, Saakashvili lost his Ukrainian citizenship. This made him a stateless person. He later re-entered Ukraine from Poland with supporters. He was arrested in February 2018 and sent out of the country. Saakashvili then moved to the Netherlands, where he was allowed to live permanently. On May 29, 2019, he returned to Ukraine. This happened after the new President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, gave him back his citizenship.

On October 1, 2021, Saakashvili announced on Facebook that he was returning to Georgia. This was after being away for eight years. He returned just before the 2021 Georgian local elections. Later that day, Georgia's Prime Minister, Irakli Garibashvili, announced that Saakashvili had been arrested in Tbilisi. He had entered the country secretly in a truck. He was then placed in a prison facility. The President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, said she would "never" pardon him. He has been moved to hospitals many times for his health. Since May 2022, he has been receiving treatment in a civilian clinic in Tbilisi.

Personal Life

Sandra Roelofs, Michelle Obama, Mikheil Saakashvili and Barack Obama in 2009

Saakashvili is married to Sandra Roelofs, a linguist from the Netherlands. They met in France in 1993. They have two sons, Eduard and Nikoloz. A few days before his return to Georgia in October 2021, Saakashvili shared a video. In it, he and Ukrainian MP Yelyzaveta Yasko said they were in a romantic relationship. Yasko later said that Sandra Roelofs was Saakashvili's "ex-wife." There had been no public reports of a divorce. On June 1, 2023, Yasko shared that she and Saakashvili had a baby. The baby's gender and birthdate were not announced. Saakashvili was in prison when the baby was born.

Besides his native Georgian, Saakashvili speaks several languages. He is fluent in English, French, Russian, and Ukrainian. He also knows some Ossetian and Spanish. In Georgia, he is often called Misha, which is a nickname for Mikheil.

Images for kids

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  Saakashvili's inauguration as president of Georgia

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  Anti-Saakashvili poster in Tbilisi, 2006

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  U.S. President George W. Bush and Saakashvili meet in Tbilisi on May 10, 2005.

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  Mikheil Saakashvili with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2010

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  Saakashvili at the 2007 European People's Party Summit in Lisbon.

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  Graffiti in Tbilisi

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  Saakashvili in 2008

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  Meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, 22 February 2008

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  Mikheil Saakashvili (2013)

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  Saakashvili-led protesters demand Petro Poroshenko's impeachment, Kyiv, 3 December 2017

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  Mikheil Saakashvili (2019)