The Wardrop Dialogue: Enhancing Georgia-UK relations

Georgia and Great Britain are stepping up cooperation to develop and improve the existing trade and economic relations both countries currently enjoy.

Yesterday Georgia’s Vice Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili met representatives from the UK’s business society at The Wardrop Dialogue.

The United Kingdom-Georgia dialogue was renamed The Wardrop Dialogue in November last year in honour of Sir Oliver Wardrop - Britain’s first Chief Commissioner to Georgia in 1919-1921 who believed in deepening cooperation between the two countries.

I assured FM Kvirikashvili that UK remains committed to right of #Georgia to decide its own future #WardropDialoguepic.twitter.com/ViBGZZ3EdF

— David Lidington (@DLidington) November 30, 2015

Member of Parliament for Aylesbury and Minister for Europe David Lidington posted on his official Twitter about the meting with Georgia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Giorgi Kvirikashvili.

During the meeting Kvirikashvili talked about the reforms Georgia had implemented in the economic sector and other areas that would develop and support Georgia’s investment, business and fiscal environment.

Georgia’s importance as a regional transit and logistics hub was also highlighted, as was the country’s leading positions in international ratings.

Kvirikashvili told the UK participants Georgia’s main purpose was to attract more European investments and offer the European business society an environment that met modern and European regulations. He also spoke about the Georgia-EU Association Agreement (AA) and its inclusive Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA).

The Wardrop Dialogue was attended by representatives from more than 20 leading British companies. The group expressed interest in learning more about Georgia and possibly implementing business projects in the country.

Meanwhile, while abroad Kvirikashvili also met the UK’s Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth AffairsPhilip Hammond.

Kvirikashvili thanked Hammond for supporting Georgia and deepening the already strong friendship between Georgia and the UK, to which Hammond again confirmed the UK supported Georgia’s EU-NATO integration.

Regional security issues were at the top of their bilateral talks. Hammond told Kvirikashvili that the UK supported Georgia’s sovereignty and threats against the country’s territorial integrity remained among the priority issues in the UK’s agenda.

Georgia reaffirmed its readiness to contribute to a strengthened global anti-terrorist campaign.