German Chancellor Visits Georgia this Month
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Wednesday, August 15
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Georgia on August 23-24, Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani stated on Tuesday.
It will be Merkel’s second visit to Georgia, as the first official trip to the country took place ten years ago, shortly after the Russia-Georgia war, when Merkel met with then-President Mikheil Saakashvili in Tbilisi.
Zalkaliani stated that Merkel would also visit other countries in the South Caucasus.
He said that the visit “proved Germany’s continued support to Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic goals and intentions.”
Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze was the first to mention the upcoming visit earlier this month.
“The upcoming visit of the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany to Georgia, bilateral relations and key aspects of European and Euro-Atlantic integration agenda of Georgia were predominantly discussed during the meeting,” the Prime Minister’s press office reported.
Bakhtadze stated that the Georgian government deems the upcoming official visit of Merkel as the most crucial event in developing bilateral relations.
The prime minister mentioned the significant role of Germany in the institutional construction of the country.
Former Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili met Merkel in September last year, when Merkel’s party, the Christian Democrats (CDU) won German federal elections, making Merkel a Chancellor for the fourth term.
Kvirikashvili was the first world leader Merkel met after elections in Germany.
2017 was declared as a year celebrating the friendship of Germany and Georgia.
25 years ago Georgia and Germany established their first diplomatic ties.
