PM expresses optimism about future of US-Georgia relations

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, who is participating in the European Political Community (EPC) Summit in Tirana, on Friday expressed optimism about the future of United States-Georgia relations, stating that a reboot in bilateral ties could be achieved under President Trump’s administration - if the influence of the deep state is diminished.

In his remarks, Kobakhidze reaffirmed his Government's desire to reboot relations with the United States.

“Once again, we have expressed our interest in rebooting relations. From the very beginning, there was a positive expectation within [our] society when President Trump was elected - the expectation was that, under the new administration, the relationship between Georgia and the United States would fundamentally change”, the PM said.

He further pointed to what he described as a shared ideological and value-based alignment between the two governments as the foundation for optimism.

“This expectation had a solid foundation - namely, ideological and value-based alignment, which is clearly evident from public statements. I’m referring to the alignment between the Governments of Georgia and the United States. Based on this alignment, there was naturally a strong sense of anticipation. Once again, we express our optimistic attitude regarding all this”, the PM noted.

However, Kobakhidze asserted that this potential had been hindered by what he termed as the continued influence of the deep state within the United States institutions.

“We hope that, ultimately, President Trump’s administration will be able to reduce and weaken the influence of the deep state - and in that case, I believe nothing will stand in the way of rebooting Georgian-American relations”, he concluded.