Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has met with a delegation from the US State Department, which included Special Assistant to the US Secretary of State Charles Yockey and Director of the Office for Russian and Caucasian Affairs Peter Andreoli.
The meeting took place at the Government Administration building on Monday, and was also attended by Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili and Head of the Government Administration Levan Zhorzholiani.
‘The meeting focused on the importance of resetting USA–Georgia relations and establishing a strategic partnership based on a concrete roadmap’, the Georgian government administration said in a press release, adding that ‘special emphasis was placed on Georgia’s role as a trustworthy and reliable partner in the region’.
The government administration also noted that Kobakhidze had reaffirmed the government’s ‘readiness to renew bilateral relations from a clean slate, based on mutual respect’.
The US State Department delegation is visiting Tbilisi from 24–29 May to meet with ruling Georgian Dream party representatives, opposition parties, businesspeople, and religious leaders, the US Embassy told Civil.ge on Monday.
‘The meetings will focus on what is needed to set our two countries on a path to improved bilateral relations and increased prosperity for the Georgian and American people’, the Embassy stated.
This marks the second US State Department visit to Georgia in May, following a trip by US Department of State Deputy Assistant Secretary Sonata Coulter who met with Kobakhidze and the opposition following meetings in Armenia.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
While relations between Georgia and the US have sharply deteriorated amidst the Georgian authorities’ adoption of restrictive laws, the disputed 2024 parliamentary elections, and police violence against anti-government demonstrators, these visits denote a recent intensification in bilateral relations.
The highest-level communication between the sides to date took place at the end of March, when Kobakhidze held a phone conversation with US State Secretary Marco Rubio. At the same time, however, US President Donald Trump also signed a continuation of earlier sanctions that included measures against Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili.
In January, a congressional staff delegation visited Georgia, while in March the acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the State Department, Peter Andreoli, was in the country. In both cases, meetings were held with representatives of both the government and the opposition.
Also in March, a delegation of Georgian Dream MPs visited Washington, where MP Nikoloz Samkharadze addressed the Alliance of Sovereign Nations summit, organised by far-right, pro-Russian Republican congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna.
Earlier, in February, Georgia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Lasha Darsalia travelled to Washington, where he met with representatives of the US State Department, including Brendan Hanrahan, the Senior Bureau Official for European and Eurasian Affairs.
Rubio’s boilerplate Independence Day message
The most recent US State Department meetings come at the same time as Rubio is expected to arrive in Armenia — he is not expected to visit Georgia personally.
On Tuesday, Rubio offered his congratulations on the occasion of Georgia’s Independence Day, writing that:
‘This year offers fresh opportunities to deepen the bonds of friendship between the American and Georgian people and to advance greater security and prosperity for both our nations.
The United States remains steadfast in its support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. We stand alongside the Georgian people as they pursue lasting security, freedom, and independence. The United States is committed to a partnership in line with Georgia’s aspirations for a secure and prosperous future’.
Opposition leaders quickly noted Rubio’s language, highlighting that his well-wishes were dedicated to the Georgian people as opposed to the government.
‘The addressee of the letter is us, not the so-called government. Therefore, this letter requires a response from us! Today at 7 o’clock, there should be a lot of us near the university, including for this reason! More than those who met Rubio in Yerevan’, opposition leader Nika Gvaramia wrote, highlighting the intended opposition rally to take place on Tuesday evening in contrast to government-scheduled celebrations.
