Strategic partnership with China does not contradict and will not hinder Georgia's main foreign policy priorities - Ilia Darchiashvili

"The deepening of relations between Georgia and China serves the country's strategically important interests and will in no way hinder the main foreign political priorities of Georgia and the historical choice of the Georgian people - integration into the European and Euro-Atlantic space," said the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ilia Darchiashvili, during his speech in the parliament.

As the minister noted, the main task of the Georgian government is to ensure the country's security, stable development and economic growth. The government implements a pragmatic, results-oriented policy and uses all available opportunities to achieve these goals.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs highlighted the visit of the Prime Minister of Georgia to Beijing this year, at the invitation of the President of the People's Republic of China. According to him, this visit will give a new impetus to the cooperation between the two countries and will contribute to the establishment of strategic partnership.

"The joint statement adopted during the Prime Minister’s visit to China is of a declaratory nature and expresses the desire of the parties to deepen partnership relations. The Declaration deals with political, economic and cultural cooperation, international issues, and reaffirms the common aspiration towards regional and global peace, stability and development", said the head of the Foreign Ministry.

The Minister stated that the 4 areas defined in the Declaration - political, economic, people-to-people and cultural relations and the international dimension - are in full line with the resolution on the country's foreign policy approved by the parliament in December 2020, which states that "Georgian authorities will contribute to deepening foreign-economic, trade and people-to-people contacts with the People's Republic of China."

The minister also emphasized that the goals declared by the parties do not imply modification of Georgia's foreign policy course and are in full compliance with Georgia's development strategy.

According to Ilia Darchiashvili, China is an important player on the world political map, therefore, deepening relations with this country is a priority of all international partners. According to the minister, more than 60 countries have established strategic partnership relations with China and signed relevant agreements.

In his speech in the Parliament, the Minister of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed that Georgia and China respect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, which represents their unshakable and consistent position. 

Speaking about the global context, Ilia Darchiashvili noted that Georgia, like other countries and the United Nations, supports any initiative that contributes to ensuring peace and security, resolving existing regional conflicts in a peaceful way.

According to the Minister, the Government of Georgia is closely watching the ongoing cooperation between China and the Central and Eastern European countries, which are aimed at the implementation of joint investment and business projects in Eastern European countries aimed to enhance their cooperation with China.