Cheers for 'freedom fighter' Bush

George Bush told a huge, cheering crowd today that the former Soviet republic of Georgia is proof that determined people can claim freedom from oppressive rulers.

Speaking in Tbilisi's Freedom Square, the US President told tens of thousands of Georgians: "You gathered here armed with nothing but roses and the power of your convictions and you claimed your liberty."

And in a line that appeared directed at Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mr Bush declined to support the bid of two separatist regions aligned with Moscow to gain independence from Georgia.

"The sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia must be respected," Mr Bush said.

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili welcomed Mr Bush as "a freedom fighter".

Freedom Square is where crowds gathered after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989 and was the focus of the 2003 peaceful Rose Revolution against election fraud. Mr Bush hoped his speech would balance his presence in Moscow yesterday at a VE-Day celebration.