President: Avlabari Residence Can Be Used for High-Level Visits

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has said the former presidential residence Avlabari Palace should be used for high-level visits.

Despite refusing to live in the Avlabari residence due to its “high costs of maintenance,” Zurabishvili now says it could be used for hosting high-rank guests.

The information was released by the President’s Spokesperson, Khatia Moistsrapishvili.

“The President of Georgia believes that it will be good if the building is used for high-level visits. She also likes the idea of placing the Institute of Manuscripts of Georgia in the building, but appropriate standards are needed for this. The President of Georgia also welcomes the idea of locating a Georgian Culture Center in the Avlabari Palace,” Moistsrapishvili said.

The decision about the function of the building, built during the rule of former president Mikheil Saakashvili, has not yet been made by the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party.

However, Georgian Dream MP Mamuka Mdinaradze stated that “the arrangement of a museum was only one of the options under consideration”.

During the pre-election campaign, the GD-supported Zurabishvili mentioned several times that she would not live in the Avlabari residence if she became president, highlighting it as a state-owned building where the country's premier or foreign ministry would be better placed than the President’s Administration.

The GD had also raised the issue with Zurabishvili’s predecessor Giorgi Margvelashvili, urging him to move into the Orbeliani residence on Atoneli Street, Old Tbilisi, which was prepared for him after his election and which is now the residence of the new president.

At present Zurabishvili lives and works in Ordeliani residence.

By Thea Morrison

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