President of Georgia holds meeting in USA
By Tea Mariamidze
Tuesday, September 29
The dialogue with Russia ”is not a matter of choice but an absolute necessity”, stated the President of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, while meeting with the Georgian Diaspora in New York, USA.
The President left for the USA on September 27 together with the Georgian delegation, where he plans to make several public speeches at a number of think-tanks and meetings with U.S. lawmakers.
The meeting with the Georgian Diaspora was held in a question-and-answer format. The discussion was mainly focused on economic and domestic problems as well as the Georgian-Russian relationship.
“We have had many economic problems; mistakes were made in internal politics, but still the main factor is external. I cannot answer today how long the crisis will last because it is very difficult to forecast," said Margvelashvili.
Georgians living in America were interested in the President’s opinion regarding double citizenship. The President said that dual citizenship is available but only after passing certain procedures.
“In case of receiving another country’s citizenship, Georgian citizenship is automatically lost, but the door is open for dual citizenship. This is a law within the frameworks of which dual citizenship is available for Georgian immigrants,” the President said.
They also discussed the perspectives of increasing opportunities of receiving education by the youth abroad, repatriation issues and returning the Diaspora representatives to the homeland.
Giorgi Margvelashvili underlined the fact that the Georgian Diaspora abroad plays a significant role in Georgia’s economic, political and cultural development.
After the meeting, the folk ensemble of Georgian immigrants “Pesvebi” performed several folk dances from their repertoire in honour of the President.
Moreover, Margvelashvili attended the closing of a three-day exhibition, Discover Georgia at Chelsea Market, which aimed at the popularization of Georgian culture and products.
