STATELESS POLITICIAN PUSHES WAY BACK INTO COUNTRY
SHEHYNI, UKRAINE Mikheil Saakashvili and a small crowd of supporters shoved their way through a line of guards on the Ukrainian border Sunday, making good on the politician’s vow to return to the land that had stripped him of citizenship.
The return of the divisive and headstrong Saakashvili, who became governor of Ukraine’s Odesa region after being Georgian president from 200413, poses a strong challenge to Ukrainian Petro Poroshenko, who once was Saakashvili’s patron but then revoked his citizenship in July.
Saakashvili was appointed to the Odesa post in 2015 on the strength of his record of fighting corruption in Georgia. However he resigned the post after only 18 months, complaining that official corruption was so entrenched he could not work effectively.
The return also carries risk for Saakashvili, who is stateless. Georgia, where he faces accusations of abuse of power and misappropriation of property, has sent an extradition request for him to Ukraine. It is not clear if Ukraine intends to honour that request.
Saakashvili tried to enter Ukraine from Poland aboard a train, but that was held up at a station for hours because of his presence. He then got off the train and took a bus to the Medyka crossing but was confronted by Ukrainian guards with batons.
Saakashvili and a crowd of supporters approached the line of guards and began shoving, then broke through.