The Defense Forces of Georgia, successor to the armed services of the Democratic Republic and Soviet formations stationed in the Georgian SSR, hosts military parades on May 26, Independence Day, the anniversary of the formation of the republic in 1918, together with elements from the National Police, the Border Police and the Georgian Coast Guard. The first parade was held on Independence Day in 1991, with 10,000 soldiers of the National Guard of Georgia taking their oath of service in front of President Zviad Gamsakhurdia at Boris Paichadze Stadium. The parade was held without heavy equipment (by order of parade commander, Colonel Avtandil Tskitishvili), with only a small detachment of cavalry being brought to the stadium. Another parade was organized in 1993. From 1997 to 2004, no military parades had been organized by the government, citing financial difficulties. In 2004, President Mikheil Saakashvili restored the tradition of holding military parades. National independence parades have also been held in the cities of Batumi and Kutaisi.