Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili Attends the NATO Vilnius Summit

Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili attended the NATO summit in Vilnius. According to him, Georgia received important messages at the Vilnius Summit.

• 11/07/2023 – Georgia in NATO Vilnius Summit Communiqué

“… at the Vilnius Summit it was once again emphasized that Georgia has strong support from NATO partners. Very strong support is expressed in the speech on our sovereignty and territorial integrity, and this is clearly visible in the record of the final document itself,” said the Foreign Minister of Georgia.

Meeting with British counterpart

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Ilia Darchiashvili, met with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, James Cleverly. The parties discussed the security environment in the region and agreed on the importance of strengthening cooperation in this area.

According to the press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, at the meeting Ilia Darchiashvili and James James Cleverly “noted with satisfaction the traditional friendly and partnership relations between Georgia and the United Kingdom. Emphasis was placed on Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration, with Mr. Darchiashvili noting the importance of the United Kingdom’s support in this process”.

Meeting in the format of Georgia-Scandinavian countries

A working meeting was held between the Foreign Ministers of Georgia, Denmark and Sweden and the State Secretary of Finland in the format of Georgia and the Scandinavian countries. At the meeting it was noted that the parties are ready to strengthen cooperation in the future.

According to the Foreign Ministry’s press release, Darchiashvili spoke about Georgia’s commitment to the Euro and Euro-Atlantic aspirations, the reforms implemented to obtain candidate status, and the importance of support from Scandinavian countries.

“At the meeting it was noted that the opening of diplomatic missions of Norway and Denmark in Tbilisi is another important stage, which brings the relations between the countries to an even higher level. The head of the Georgian Foreign Ministry thanked his colleagues for their support of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, including active participation in the EU monitoring mission, which is particularly important in view of the deteriorating security situation,” the release said.

Meeting with the Greek counterpart

During the ongoing NATO Summit in Vilnius, Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili met with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis and congratulated him on his appointment.

“At the meeting the parties reviewed the agenda of relations between the countries. It was noted that Georgia values multidimensional cooperation with the Hellenic Republic based on historical ties and common European values. In addition, the ministers discussed the security environment created in the region and emphasized Georgia’s role as a reliable partner of NATO in maintaining peace and stability in the region,” the Foreign Ministry press release said.

Meeting with a Finnish counterpart

Ilia Darchiashvili met with his Finnish counterpart Elina Valtonen. According to the press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the meeting the parties discussed Georgia’s Euro and Euro-Atlantic aspirations, the reforms implemented in this way according to the 12 recommendations of the European Commission, and Finland’s support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as Euro-Atlantic aspirations.

Meeting with Estonian counterpart

Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili met with his Estonian counterpart Margus Tsahkna on July 12. At the meeting, the Estonian Foreign Minister emphasized his strong support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the country’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration.

“The meeting focused on the process of Georgia’s integration into the European and Euro-Atlantic structures. Ilia Darchishvili informed his colleague about the efforts made by Georgia and the progress achieved on this path,” the Foreign Ministry’s press release said.

After the meeting, Margus Tsahkna mentioned on Twitter that he had discussed with Darchiashvili the imposition of sanctions against Russia and the termination of flights to Russia.

Meeting with Lithuanian counterpart

Within the framework of the summit, Ilia Darchiashvili met his Lithuanian counterpart, Gabrielius Landsbergis.

According to the Foreign Ministry’s press release, “At the meeting, Ilia Darchiashvili thanked Gabrielius Landsbergis for organizing and hosting the high-level summit. The importance of Georgia’s participation in the Vilnius NATO Summit and Lithuania’s support was also emphasized. It was noted that the Summit will be effective both in terms of Georgia’s integration into NATO and in terms of expressing the Alliance’s strong support for Georgia”.

The sides also discussed the successful cooperation between the two countries in bilateral and multilateral formats and the potential for further development of the partnership.

Attention was also paid to Georgia’s European integration process and progress in implementing 12 recommendations. “With regard to NATO integration, attention was paid to the process of implementation of the decisions taken at the Madrid Summit. At the same time, the importance of Lithuania’s support for the success of Georgia’s integration process in both the European Union and NATO was emphasized,” the release said.

The Ministers also discussed the security environment in the region and the situation in the occupied territories of Georgia. Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili thanked Lithuania for its unwavering support of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

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