TBILISI, September 9 (RIA Novosti) – After being stuck in mountains for four days because of bad weather, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili eventually climbed Mount Kazbek, one of the highest mountains in the Caucasus.
Saakashvili, accompanied by former Russian presidential adviser Andrei Illarionov and Georgian opposition lawmaker Gogi Khachidze, ventured out to climb Kazbek last Monday. Kazbek is Georgia’s third-highest mountain and the seventh-highest peak in the Caucasus.
As the weather got worse on Thursday, the president had to interrupt the ascent at 3,650 meters (12,000 feet) and take refuge at a weather-forecasting station that had been converted into a shelter for climbers.
“Who said we wouldn’t be able to climb it?” Saakashvili said Monday on his Facebook page.
The president hoisted a Georgian flag on the mountain’s peak, at 5,047 meters (16,550 feet) above sea level.
Saakashvili said that despite warnings from other climbers, who had to interrupt their ascent because of strong winds near the summit, his group, which also included Ukrainians and Iranians, eventually got to the top.
“Georgia’s future is as bright as Mount Kazbek. Regardless of obstacles, we will conquer all summits,” he said.
