Georgian FM meets with US legislators, top officials, says support for Georgia will increase
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani thanked US legislators for voting for pro-Georgian resolutions and supportive acts. Photo: Foreign Ministry press office.
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Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani has met with US legislators in Washington and Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Aaron Wess Mitchell.
It has been stated during the meetings that the US support for Georgia will increase.
US Senators Ron Johnson and James Risch and Congressman Bill Flores have praised Gregorian reforms and stated that the relations between Georgia and the US Congress are at an all-time high.
Good meeting with congressman @RepBillFlores. Discussed security environment in the region. The congressman once again expressed his support for #Geo’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as for its Euro-Atlantic integration path. pic.twitter.com/zBLA6NH4vK
— David Zalkaliani (@DZalkaliani) February 5, 2019
It was welcomed that Georgia’s supportive act has been re-initiated at the 116th convocation Congress and that Senate supports the increase of financial assistance for Georgia,” the Georgian Foreign Ministry reported after Zalkaliani’s meeting with Congressman Flores.
???????????????? U.S.-#Geo strategic partnership and bipartisan support of #Georgia were highlighted at the meeting with @SenatorRisch. My appreciation to the Senator for having been supporting #Georgia for a long time. pic.twitter.com/C0HvuoVg90
— David Zalkaliani (@DZalkaliani) February 5, 2019
US legislators reiterated their firm support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and expressed their concern regarding Russia’s illegal activities on historic Georgian lands.
At the meeting with assistant secretary @wess_mitchell @StateDept we once again underlined #USA - #Geo Strategic Partnership; reconfirmed excellent political, defense and military cooperation; discussed security environment in the region and #Geo’s @NATO aspirations. pic.twitter.com/DAuLMiGfed
— David Zalkaliani (@DZalkaliani) February 5, 2019
Mitchel praised Georgia as a reliable strategic partner of the US and its role for regional stability.
Mitchell and Zalkaliani spoke about prospects for further enhancing Georgian-US ties for defence and security, as well as in the fields of economy and trade,” the Foreign Ministry reported.
The Georgian occupied territories were at the top of the agenda of the meeting.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Georgia Lasha Darsalia is visiting the US on January 8-10 to discuss bilateral cooperation prospects with the representatives of the US government and think tanks.
The US House of Representatives has passed a bill which not only condemns the occupation of Georgian lands but also provides sanctions against those who violate human rights in the two Russian-occupied regions of Georgia – Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia).
US President Donald Trump’s Security Advisor John Bolton stated in Tbilisi today that Georgia is of the highest strategic importance for the US.He said that is why the US quickly responded to Russian aggression in Georgia shortly after the Russia-Georgia 2008 war.
US President Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor John Bolton is scheduled to visit Georgia on 20 October, as he tweeted today.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani says that Georgia is on the team of its strategic ally the United States to defeat the terrorist organisation Islamic State.
The US Deputy State Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Andrea Thompson says that Georgia continues to be a close partner of the US in regional stability and defence cooperation.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani has summarised his visit to the US saying the allies have reaffirmed their support to Georgia and the recent developments near the occupation line where Russian occupation forces have renewed installing barbed wire fences have been among the major topics of discussion at the meetings.
New Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Jim Risch says that the US must preserve its sanctions against Russia because of its illegal activities in Ukraine and Georgia.
Five US senators have introduced a bill to the Senate which provides tougher sanctions against Russia for its illegal activities in Ukraine, Georgia and for its support of the violent regime of Bashar-al-Assad in Syria.
On 4 March Minister Zalkaliani will meet his Romanian, Azerbaijani and Turkmen counterparts to discuss developing a transport corridor between the Black and Caspian Seas. The foreign ministers will sign a joint declaration, expressing their countries political will to develop new transport corridors in the region.