Georgia-US partnership brings great rewards for Batumi Coast Guard

Georgia and America are celebrating a successful joint project to strengthen Georgia’s maritime border security and advance the country’s coast guard capabilities.

Officials from both countries gathered today to attend a festive celebration marking the opening of a new in-port boat basin in Georgia’s western Black Sea seaside town Batumi.

Chargé d’Affaires of the United States to Georgia Nicholas Berliner  and Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. Photo by Ministry of Interior Affairs. 

The new basin, constructed with $14 million funding from the United States (US) government, provided docking space for up to 15 vessels and ensured ensure the Georgian Coast Guard now functioned as an important operational centre. 

The US side also contributed to developing the country’s maritime border security and coast guard capabilities by fully modernising a specialist rescue and support boat – an Offshore Patrol Cutter P-103 named Batumi. 

Offshore Patrol Cutter P-103 named Batumi. Photo by Prime Minister’s webpage. 

The US noted the boat would help the Georgian Coast Guard to better carry out its maritime duties, and officially handed over the fully-equipped boat to the Georgian side today at the opening ceremony.

The boat basin is one more vivid proof of Georgian and American strategic partnership,” said Garibashvili today while thanking the US for their support. 

The project was fully financed by Georgia’s major strategic partner, the United States, and I want to thank the country’s government and its diplomatic representation in Georgia,” he added.

Chargé d’Affaires of the United States to Georgia Nicholas Berliner said the in-port boat basin and the addition of the new Coast Guard vessel would help strengthen Georgia's border and regional security capacities, and added this was "one more aspect of the vibrant US-Georgia security partnership”.

The new basin, constructed with $14 million funding from the United States. Photo by Ministry of Interior Affairs.

At the final part of the opening ceremony Garibashvili thanked Georgia’s coastguard staff for their service to the country and added much had been done in Georgia over the past three years to strengthen and develop the country’s coastguard departments.

We have modernised the Coast Guard fleet, increased the technical capacity of watercrafts and ensured their safe stationing. We have increased our efforts to combat [the use of] weapons of mass destruction as well,” Garibashvili added.