Making the case for NATO membership, Georgian President Mikheil Saakaskvili argued that his country has moved from a “failed state” into a thriving democracy and one of the fastest growing economies in Europe. NATO is a “values based alliance” and Georgia has proven by deeds that it shares those values. While many contend Georgia should choose a middle way between Russia and the West, Saakaskvili declared there is “no middle ground between evil and good.”

In his first U.S. speech since his re-election in January, to the Atlantic Council of the United States, Saakaskvili was both charming and provocative. He repeatedly called out Russia for its domestic and international policies, included pointed references to “ethnic cleansing” in Abkhazia, and noted how far his country has progressed in comparison.

The president noted that when he was elected in January 2004, Georgia was a corrupt “failed state” with no infrastructure to speak of, no real army, and a police force that was so distrusted by the people that no one would report crime. Its economy was ranked behind that of Nigeria. After a series of reforms, the World Bank ranks it 18th in the world for investment, ahead of even Germany. The rule of law is now so entrenched, he joked, that Georgians will now stop at red lights at 3 a.m. even when there is no traffic.

He points proudly to his re-election in January on a reform agenda with 52 percent of the vote. He contrasted it with the 97 percent he received the first time, noting that this proved Georgia was now “a real democracy.” He vowed that no candidate would ever get 70 percent, let alone 97 percent, again.

Saakaskvili argued that the situation in Abkhazia was the result of “a brutal ethnic cleansing campaign” by Russia in 1992-93 that decimated the Georgian population in that region. He says this must have a “peaceful, democratic solution” rather than a Russian-imposed one. He fears Russian annexation in the wake of demonstrated powerlessness and lack of resolve by NATO, the OECD, and the EU.

He says “Georgia is not suicidal” and desperately wants trade and good relations with Russia. This has been complicated because many think of Georgia as “a U.S. proxy,” a charge he denies.

The re-emergence of Russia as a regional player has led many in Europe to argue that it – and Georgia in particular – should “be a middle ground between the U.S. and Russia.” Saakaskvili rejects that position, arguing that “there is no middle ground between evil and good.”

Similarly, he rejects the idea that Europe should deny Georgia entry into NATO because of Russian objections. The idea that “non-NATO members have veto rights over NATO decisions” is insulting and “NATO is a values based alliance,” he argued, and should not compromise those values to “appease” Russia. “Appeasement never works,” at least “not for long,” and Georgian entry into a Membership Action Plan would actually bring “more chances for peace” by removing incentives for Russian bellicosity.

Asked whether Georgia should voluntarily give up on NATO membership for the sake of regional comity, Saakaskvili pointed to a referendum in which 78 percent of his countrymen voted for NATO membership. He reiterated that “NATO is a valued based alliance” and that Georgia’s people have chosen “values over geography.” While one needs to be “flexible and pragmatic” given Russia’s status as a regional economic and military power, societies “can’t compromise on values. You don’t compromise with evil.”

Russia has replaced the dead ideology of Marxist-Leninism with “the ideology of money,” which has brought its own set of problems. Russian elites, he says, are sending their children to the West for education and sending their families abroad to receive decent health care. Even Vladimir Putin recognizes that Russia must move beyond the extraction economy of oil and gas and modernize.

Saakaskvili claims Russia is rejecting opportunities to peacefully resolve its disputes with Georgia. After Kosovo declared its independence, “Russia told us very clearly that this is no longer about you and us, it's about us and the West.”

Asked whether NATO membership would be “a consolation prize” to a country seeking EU membership, Saakaskvili declared that Georgia was “not yet ready” to join the EU. Modernization is a “process” and Georgia needs the incentives provided in the NATO Membership Action Plan to “get ready” for EU membership. Despite the enormous changes his country has gone through in a short time, it still needs a “transition period.” This is especially true because EU membership requirement require “more changes, harder ones” that will be culturally difficult.

He suggested, too, that the EU itself needed some time. “Europe is exhausted and allergic to expansion” after so many changes since the Cold War. He also noted the irony that Georgia’s success come largely through de-regulation and de-centralization and that EU membership will require a partial reversal of those policies.

Questioned about hunger strikes and other domestic issues in Georgia, Saakaskvili declared that simply part and parcel of democracy. People have a right to protest, he said, but “elections decide policy.” He noted that the January election had large numbers of international observes – which he joked were “good for tourism” and brought needed cash into the Georgian economy – and that they had been pronounced “Free and fair but not perfect.”

He hopes to continue on the road to democratization but thinks it will take “a generation change” to fully get past the vestiges of the Soviet experience. The key so far has been “defining the role of the state” and “the rules of the game.” By privatizing most state enterprises and eliminating 90 percent of licensing requirements, he has eliminated most corruption and attracted much-needed foreign direct investment. Compared even to most Western democracies, Saakaskvili declared, there is “no red tape, low taxes, and no corruption.” Those, he says, “are our comparative advantage.”