Georgian Parliament official says US relations being “rebooted”, cites new Ambassador appointment

Vladimir Bozhadze, the First Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, on Thursday said the Georgian Government had initiated a reboot of its relationship with the United States, pointing to the recent appointment of a new Georgia’s Ambassador to the United States as evidence of the renewed diplomatic momentum.

Bozhadze’s comments come in response to a joint statement by the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee members, which accused the Georgian Dream government of “aggressively consolidating power through anti-democratic actions that suppress independent voices - reminiscent of the Lukashenko regime”.

“It is unfortunate that specific persons who were presented to us as friends of Georgia turned out to be friends of the [domestic] radical opposition. We have started rebooting relations with America, and the appointment of a new Ambassador is proof of this. I hope that these relations will further develop despite such harsh statements”, Bozhadze said.