Georgian President: Georgia seeking common ground with US based on mutual respect

Georgian president Mikheil Kavelashvili on Sunday said the process of restoring relations with the United States has already begun, emphasising that Tbilisi is approaching the issue with sincerity and readiness for dialogue based on mutual respect and trust.

In his interview with Imedi TV, Kavelashvili noted that the Georgian government is ready to look for areas where the interests of both countries intersect.

“We speak very openly about this issue. Whenever we have had the opportunity for brief interactions, we have been sincere and conveyed the same message to them. When I was on a visit to the United Nations, I had the opportunity to speak with them [US officials] and their response was identical - that they need time, that they are working on the issue, and that they will certainly return to us and will be able to restart relations”, he noted.

The president added that the public was aware of additional details following his visit to Milan, where he had the opportunity to speak with the US secretary of state and the vice president JD Vance.

“The response there was the same. There was also a successful visit of the parliamentary delegation to the Congress, where the same attitude was expressed and the same process is ongoing”, Kavelashvili noted.

He emphasised that the reasons behind the current situation were well known to the Georgian public, recalling the approach of the previous US administration.

The president argued that the context of current relations should be understood in light of tensions with the previous US administration. He recalled that at the time, U.S. briefings often began with criticism of Georgia regarding the transparency law.

Kavelashvili also referred to the Georgian government’s criticism of activities by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), claiming that later discussions in the United States itself raised concerns about corruption and the role of certain organisations in attempts to influence political processes abroad.

“When we say we are ready, we are sincere, and based on our interests we must seek where our interests intersect on the basis of mutual respect and mutual trust. This process has already begun”, the president said.

Commenting on criticism from what he described as radical groups regarding signs of improvement in relations with the United States, including the successful visit of a parliamentary delegation to the US Congress, Kavelashvili said their reaction showed they were not thinking about the interests of the state.

“Either your mind is so closed that this means nothing to you and you simply want to remove this government at any cost - ‘let my country be destroyed, let anything happen, as long as I come to power’. They will not change. The restoration of our relations [between Georgia and the United States] is destructive for them”, he concluded.