Mikheil Janelidze: “Each citizen of Georgia sees the benefits of the Association Agreement”
“Today is a very important day – 1 July when the EU-Georgia Association Agreement came into force. It is a great achievement – towards which Georgia has been aspiring since the restoration of its independence. We are aspiring to the European family to which we belong, to become a European state based on European values, standards and principles” - the Georgian Foreign Minister, Mikheil Janelidze said at a joint press conference following his meeting with his German counterpart, Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
According to Janelidze, the Association Agreement has already yielded positive results in terms of economic and institutional development, as well as of Georgia’s political association with the EU and sectorial integration. “Each citizen of Georgia sees the benefits of the Association Agreement. Economic interaction with the EU Member States including with Germany gradually increases, so do investments and export. Germany provides us with considerable assistance in this direction” - Mikheil Janelidze said
On 1 July 2016 the EU-Georgia Association Agreement came into force in compliance with its Article 431, after the EU Foreign Affairs Council announced its decision to end the procedures needed for ratification of the AA. The laborious process of ratification lasted less than two years and involved the European Parliament, 28 EU Member States and the legislative bodies of Georgia. The ratification of the Association Agreement in such short terms points to the EU Member States’ firm support for Georgia’s European path.
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Mikheil Janelidze has met with the newly-appointed Head of the NATO Liaison Office
Georgian Vice Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze met with the newly-appointed Head of the NATO Liaison Office, Rosaria Puglisi.
The Minister congratulated Rosaria Puglisi on her appointment wishing her success in her future endeavours. Discussions focused on various aspects of Georgia-NATO co-operation, including the implementation of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package (SNGP) and the preparation for the NATO Summit in 2018.
Special attention was paid to the important role the NATO Liaison Office plays in terms of facilitating Georgia’s integration with NATO, as well as promoting communication with the population.
According to Rosaria Puglisi, the priority during her term of office will be assisting Georgia in moving closer to the Alliance. She reaffirmed NATO’s firm support for Georgia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and Euro-Atlantic aspirations. -
Within the framework of his visit to New York, the Georgian Vice Premier, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze attended the global business forum organized by Bloomberg.
The high-level meeting was opened by Bloomberg Founder and President Michael Bloomberg, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron and Alibaba Founder Jack Ma.
Within the framework of the meeting, Mikheil Janelidze had the opportunity to exchange his views with the world leaders and the heads of the largest business companies, including the former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Bloomberg Founder Michael Bloomberg. Underlining the importance of business-government co-operation in overcoming the global challenges, the latter thanked the Georgian Vice Premier for his participation in the event.
On the sidelines of the event, Mikheil Janelidze also met with the Chief Executive Officer of MasterCard Company, Ajay Banga, who expressed his interest in Georgia’s business environment and in identifying priority areas for co-operation with Georgia.
EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and representatives of international companies took part in the thematic panels and spoke before the participants of the event. -
The Georgian Vice Premier, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze met with Chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), Li Jinzao, on the sidelines of the 22ndGeneral Assembly of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
The Georgian Foreign Minister emphasized Georgia’s successeful co-operation with China in many areas, including in tourism and welcomed the establishment of the world tourism alliance at the initiative of China.
Discussions focused on issues of bilateral relations. Mikheil Janelidze noted with satisfaction Georgia’s active participation in One belt One road Initiative. Special attention was paid to the signing of free trade agreement between Georgia and China, Georgia’s involvement in the Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank and many other important projects.
The development of tourism, culture and people-to-people contacts was identified as the priority areas of co-operation between the two countries. It was underlined that Georgia with its winter and summer resorts is an attractive tourist destination for China. Special note, in this context, was taken of the importance of direct flights between China and Georgia and of Chinese businessmen’s rising interest in Georgia’s tourism potential.
At the end of the meeting Mikheil Janelidze invited Li Jinzao to Georgia.
The meeting with the Chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) was attended by the newly-elected UNWTO Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili and Georgia’s Ambassador to China Davit Aptsiauri.
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The Georgian Vice Premier, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze participated in the official opening of the 22nd General Assembly of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) held in Chengdu, China from 12 to 15 September 2017. The event brought together up to 1500 delegates from 150 countries across the world.
On the sidelines of the General Assembly, Mikheil Janelidze held a brief meeting with representatives of the Chinese Authorities. Highlighting the importance of developing people-to-people contacts and co-operation in tourism, the Chinese side thanked the Georgian delegation for participation in the General Assembly.
The 22nd General Assembly will approve candidacy for the post of UNWTO Secretary-General for the period 2018-2021. The 105th session of the UNWTO Executive Council, meeting in Madrid, Spain, on 12 May 2017, recommended Zurab Pololikashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to Spain, as a nominee for the post of Secretary-General for the four-year-period starting January 2018. The Head of the Georgian National Tourism Administration Giorgi Chogovadze also attends the General Assembly. -
Georgian Vice Premier, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze attended the official launch of Noble Partner - 2017 multinational defence exercise.
Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili, Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Defence Minister Levan Izoria Chief of General Staff of Georgian Armed Forces Vladimer Chachibaia and U.S. Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly spoke at the opening.
“The drills contribute to peace and stability in Georgia and in the region and strengthen Georgia’s defence capacity and its European and Euro-Atlantic integration” – Mikheil Janelidze told journalist following the opening ceremony.
Georgia for the third time hosts the annual Noble Partner defence exercise with its European and regional partners with troops from eight countries joining forces for the training at the Vaziani military air base outside the capital of Tbilisi.
Service members from Georgia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Ukraine, Turkey, Slovenia and Armenia participate in the drills focused on improving defence and attack skills.
The Noble Partner 2017 is a part of drills of the European Command in the Black Sea region, which is being held on the territory of seven countries.
Noble Partner 2017 will continue Saber Guardian in Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary and Sea Breeze in Ukraine.
Established in 2015, the Noble Partner exercise was initially founded to train service members from the Georgian Armed Forces and NATO member states for the NATO Response Force (NRF) unit and to improve the Georgian troops’ interoperability with NATO units.
