President Saakashvili said the planned visit of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Georgia on July 9-10 was of “a serious foreign policy importance and a serious facilitator of the development of our statehood.”

Speaking at a session of the National Security Council, Saakashvili said Georgia had “firmly committed itself to taking all steps necessary for a peaceful and diplomatic settlement of the conflicts.”

“I think that Secretary Rice’s visit is an important part of this effort,” he added. “[The visit] is also support for Georgia’s democratic course, democratic progress, which was recognized by the entire world after the two elections held in Georgia, and the United States is actively supporting it.”

He also said that the visit was important from the economic point of view as well.

“This [visit] will support the inflow of investment to Georgia, which will enable us to implement our 50-month plan for the creation of new jobs and new opportunities. We should jointly achieve our major goal – Georgian without poverty,” Saakashvili said.