Georgian Education Minister summarises US trip, highlighting positive outlook for bilateral ties

Georgian minister of education Givi Mikanadze on Friday summarised his official visit to the United States, describing the outlook for bilateral cooperation as “highly promising”.

In his interview with Imedi TV, Mikanadze described the visit as significant, highlighting meetings in Washington with representatives of the US State Department, including officials from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

The minister emphasised a positive shift in relations, noting a mutual readiness to reset and deepen ties between the two nations.

“This was a very important visit. I would particularly highlight the meetings held in Washington. We had the opportunity to meet with the head of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the State Department, his deputy, and the State Department staff responsible for relations with Georgia. It was clearly stated that it is important to continue and deepen relations between the two countries”, he said.

The minister noted that Georgian officials expressed readiness to reset relations, while American counterparts viewed future cooperation as promising, particularly in education reform and university partnerships.

“We expressed readiness to reset relations. We feel that American partners view cooperation with us very positively and as highly promising. This is also confirmed by the fact that we had multiple thematic discussions and received full support both in terms of educational reform and in continuing active cooperation between Georgian state universities and American universities”, Mikanadze said.

He also highlighted discussions about US-funded foundations and their role in Georgia, claiming that such practices had been stopped following political changes in the United States.

“We also discussed US-funded foundations that were interfering in the country’s internal affairs. The American side clearly stated that since the arrival of the Trump administration, these harmful practices have already been stopped. They expressed a desire to continue cooperation with Georgia based on noble goals aimed at supporting and strengthening the country”, he stressed.

Beyond Washington, Mikanadze also held meetings in New York at the UN headquarters, including with senior UN officials responsible for youth affairs, regional development, and UNICEF.