Georgian President, US senators review Georgia’s European integration, Ukraine war, regional security
Zourabichvili said the efforts were an expression of the “will and opinion of the Georgian people” over the European integration of the country. Photo: Presidential Administration
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The European integration of Georgia, ongoing war in Ukraine and security environment in the Black Sea region were discussed on Monday in a meeting between the Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili and the American senators Jeanne Shaheen and Dick Durbin.
The visiting senators said they appreciated the role and position of the Georgian President in efforts for the country’s European integration, the Presidential Administration said.
Zourabichvili said the efforts were an expression of the “will and opinion of the Georgian people” over the European integration of the country.
Unwavering support from our strategic partner, the United States is as important today as ever ???????? ????????
— Salome Zourabichvili (@Zourabichvili_S) February 20, 2023
???? interesting meeting with @SenatorShaheen and @SenatorDurbin discussing Georgia’s #EuroAtlantic path and the ongoing war in #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/dxkxey3Jl8
She also said Georgian citizens “deserved” seeing the country being granted the EU membership candidate status as they had been “serving European values for 30 years”.
She also pointed out a “strategic decision” was to be made on the candidate status, adding the country “should not be refused the status for a second time”, in a reference to last year’s decision by the European Commission that granted Georgia a European perspective instead.
The meeting also noted the security risks of the war in Ukraine in relation to Georgia, and the Kremlin’s past and ongoing aggressions against the country.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Saturday discussed the possibilities of further deepening the strategic partnership between Georgia and the United States and the measures needed to be taken in this direction with Eric Swalwell, the United States Congressman.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Friday said the alliance would continue to “work closely” with partners like Georgia in what he called a “part of the message” of the bloc as the Russian invasion of Ukraine neared its first anniversary.
A Georgian delegation chaired by the country’s Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze on Tuesday joined more than 50 top military officials from NATO member and allied states in Brussels to discuss assistance to Ukraine amid its ongoing defence from the Russian invasion.
The important programmes, carried out with the support of the United States for strengthening Georgia’s defence capabilities, were discussed on Saturday in a meeting between Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze and General Daniel Hokanson, the Chief of the National Guard Bureau of the US.
The existing strategic partnership between Georgia and the United States, the former’s progress on the path of European integration and the security situation in the Black Sea region were discussed on Monday in a meeting between Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and the American senators Jeanne Shaheen and Dick Durbin.
Irakli Beraia, the Chair of the Defence and Security Committee in the Georgian Parliament, on Thursday said Georgia's Euro-Atlantic integration was not only in the interests of the country, but also of the “Euro-Atlantic space as a whole”.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili will start her working visit to the United States on Sunday, within which she is set to address the representatives of the United Nations member states on Monday at the 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women with a focus on the empowerment of women and girls.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili and Jake Sullivan, the United States President Joe Biden’s National Security Advisor, held a meeting on Friday during Zourabichvili’s visit to Washington.
Georgia President Salome Zourabichvili on Monday visited Lithuania to promote bilateral cooperation between the states and discuss her country’s Euro-Atlantic integration prospects, the President Administration said.
The United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday wished Georgian citizens a happy Independence Day and said they understood “deeply” the “value of independence, freedom and democracy”.