Protest numbers have fallen since 50,000 attended Friday's rally

He refused to hold early elections, saying he would not be blackmailed.

Huge crowds have gathered outside parliament in Tbilisi for the past three days, calling for early elections and for Mr Saakashvili's resignation.

They were the largest protests since the Rose Revolution which brought Mr Saakashvili to power four years ago.

It seems that the Georgian president does not comprehend the heart of the matter

Levan Berdzenishvili

opposition MP

The Georgian opposition accuses Mr Saakashvili of leading an authoritarian government which has failed to tackle widespread deprivation in the country.

Mr Saakashvili promised to address the issues of poverty and unemployment.

But as he spoke, thousands of protesters again blocked the main street of the capital, maintaining their pressure for the Georgian president to step down.

Estimates vary but it seems at least 15,000 people turned out for the protest outside parliament on Sunday, chanting "Misha [Mr Saakashvili] must leave".

Blaming Russia

I'd like everybody to think what kind of threats Georgia will face during the Russian election period

Mikhail Saakashvili

Georgian president

Speaking on Georgian TV, the president said the next parliamentary and presidential elections would be held in Georgia "at the time envisaged by the constitution", or the autumn of 2008.

He suggested that politicians in Russia, which dominated Georgia in Tsarist and Soviet times, were stirring the current unrest for their own political reasons because of forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections there.

"A campaign of lies has begun working against the president, against Georgia and against the interests of the Georgian people," Mr Saakashvili said.

"Two wars were started in the Russian Federation, in Chechnya, because of elections. I'd like everybody to think what kind of threats Georgia will face during the Russian election period."

Georgian opposition politicians were quick to attack his speech, accusing him of failing to understand the situation inside Georgia.

"He said that the people who are standing in the street now are dark forces, that they are idiots and that they are marginal," Tinatin Khidasheli, a leading Republican Party member, told local TV.

"I am very troubled at the fact that the Georgian president is talking to his people like this."

"It seems that the Georgian president does not comprehend the heart of the matter," Republican Party MP Levan Berdzenishvili added.

"The Georgian president is confusing Georgia's problems with those of Russia," the opposition politician added.