US Ambassador hopes new Administration will continue supporting Georgia

The United States (US) Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly hopes his home country will continue supporting Georgia once the US officially welcomes millionaire businessman Donald Trump as the country's new president.

The good thing is that the US support for Georgia will continue and this was confirmed by a decisions of Congress on Georgia’s sovereignty," said Kelly.

The US Ambassador said he was expecting a smooth transition of power from current President Barack Obama to the President-elect, which will finalise on January 20 when Trump is inaugurated. 

This week there will be several meetings regarding the transition period in the US and of course I do hope the US will continue supporting Georgia in the future as well,” said Kelly.

The US diplomat promised his role under the new US Administration will not change - he will continue focusing on and supporting Georgia and will continue working in this direction under the new US government.

Meanwhile, Georgia was also promising to continue offering a favourable investment climate to businesses and investors in the US.

Georgia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mikheil Janelidze last week said Georgia was interested in deepening its business ties with the US, especially when the county was about to welcome a new president.

I am sure the new US President’s policy will be beneficial for both countries and will be oriented on developing trade and economic ties,” said Janelidze while commenting on Georgia's future cooperation with the US following Trump's election victory.

Read this article if you are curious about Trump's unique connection with Georgia.

Janelidze believed American investors were attracted to Georgia’s open economy, ease of doing business and a various opportunities the country had to offer.

Last year 154 new businesses established by US citizens were registered in Georgia, up 123 percent from the 69 businesses registered the previous year, showed figures from the National Statistics Office of Georgia, Geostat.

The US was one of Georgia’s major investor countries in 2015, investing $35 million USD in the country, said Geostat.

The bond between Georgia and the US was strong but this year bilateral relations were strengthening and Janelidze hoped the new US Administration would continue cooperating with Georgia in a range of sectors.