Georgian Dream–elected President Mikheil Kavelashvili said he had a “brief encounter” with U.S. President Donald Trump at a dinner hosted by the American leader at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
“I had a warm greeting with him [Trump],” Kavelashvili told Georgian reporters in New York, adding, “Then […] I told him that it was time to start our relations from a clean slate, to which he replied, ‘Yes, I will look into this matter.’”
“Then I told him again that it is necessary and it is already time for our relationship to start [from a clean slate], and he assured me he would certainly revisit this issue and follow up. Let’s wait and see what his response will be.” Kavelashvili added.
No photo or video has been released of the encounter that Kavelashvili told journalists about.
Kavelashvili also said he held “several meetings” with the U.S. administration members. Earlier, he shared a picture with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, describing their communication as “friendly” and saying he conveyed to Lutnick “the message of the Georgian people, namely that the current administration’s silence with respect to Georgia raises questions within our society.” He added that Lutnick “assured me that he would duly convey my views to members of the administration.”
Georgian Dream–elected President Mikheil Kavelashvili, accompanied by GD Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili and GD Health Minister Mikheil Sarjveladze, attended the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York from September 22 to 26. On September 25, he delivered his address to the General Assembly in Georgian. Kavelashvili’s appearance on the world stage was limited to a few meetings, including with the presidents of Slovakia and Serbia.
Kavelashvili’s said encounter with Trump, in which he spoke of resetting Georgia-U.S. relations, comes amid strained ties between Tbilisi and Washington, as GD officials call for a reset while regretting the U.S. president’s “silence” despite what they describe as “shared values.”
On September 1, Kavelashvili penned an open letter to Trump, expressing regret over what he called the Trump administration’s “passivity” toward Georgia despite “full alignment in values” with the Georgian government, and accusing the “Deep State” of still dominating in Georgia. In May, GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze also penned a similar open letter to Trump.
Kobakhidze and the Georgian Dream say that Trump is in a “battle” with the “deep state” and that the prospect of resetting relations hinges on whether Trump prevails.
Also Read:
- 11/09/2025 – U.S. Helsinki Commission Holds Hearing on Georgia’s “Anti-American Turn”
- 07/07/2025 – U.S. Ambassador: GD Sent “Threatening, Insulting, Unserious” Letter to Trump Administration
- 28/05/2025 – Ivanishvili Says Sanctions, “Blackmail” Behind His Refusal to Meet U.S. Diplomat
- 21/05/2025 – U.S. Secretary of State Rubio Calls Georgian Dream an “Anti-American Government”, Warns of Consequences
- 30/11/2024 – BREAKING: U.S. Suspends Strategic Partnership with Georgia
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