Foreign Minister meets with Council of Europe representatives in France

The Council of Europe (CoE) has a "close and open” dialogue with Georgia, Deputy Secretary General of the CoE Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni said after meeting with Georgian Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze yesterday.

We have a specific plan for cooperation with the country since a number of years… we have a plan of action, namely a cooperation program whereby we help Georgia reinforce its democratic institutions and we work together in the field of judiciary and other areas which are also important for the democratic life of the country” (sic), Battaini-Dragoni said.

She said the CoE appreciates the efforts of the Georgian government to democratize the country.

Minister Janelidze left for an official working visit to Strasbourg, France yesterday where he met with representatives of the CoE, the CoE Parliamentary Assembly and the European Court of Human Rights. Photo from MFA Georgia 

With Isil Gachet, Director of the Office of CoE Commissioner for Human Rights, Janelidze discussed relations between Georgia and the CoE with a special emphasis on successful co-operation in the area of human rights’ protection.

In particular, the parties discussed the human rights situation in Georgia’s occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia).

Minister Janelidze spoke about the closure of the crossing-points along the occupation line in Abkhazia and about the illegal referendum scheduled on April 9 in Tskhinvali region, which according to the parties violates the fundamental rights of the local population living along the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) between Georgia and its breakaway regions.