President Saakashvili is visiting Thai city of Chiang Mai, which hosts water security summit on May 19-20

On the sideline of the second 2nd Asia-Pacific Water Summit, President Saakashvili met Thailand’s Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, as well as Laos Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong.

Saakashvili said in televised comments that the visit was part of his policy of deterring Russia’s efforts to gain international recognition for breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia. He said that summit in Chiang Mai was the forum which was gathering number of those countries, which Russia was actively trying to convince in recognizing Tskhinvali and Sokhumi.

Saakashvili said that he was also going to visit Ecuador to participate in an inauguration ceremony of Rafael Correa for his third presidential term on May 24.

The Georgian Dream coalition has complained recently that President Saakashvili foreign trips were not coordinated with the government and the Foreign Ministry was not even aware about purpose of these visits. GD also complained that only lawmakers from Saakashvili’s UNM party were part of the President’s delegations, ignoring GD parliamentary majority.

President Saakashvili said that more coordination was needed and also invited GD lawmakers to be part of his delegation during his upcoming visit to Ecuador.