Georgian Parliament Speaker Holds Meetings in Israel

Georgian Parliament Speaker Irakli Kobakhidze, along with the Georgian Parliamentary Delegation, held high-rank meetings in Israel on October 24-25.

Following an official reception ceremony and a visit to the Memorial to the Heroes fallen in Battle, Kobakhidze held a face to face meeting with the Speaker of the Knesset, Yuli-Yoel Edelstein.

The meeting continued in an enlarged format attended by the Georgian delegation and Israel-Georgia Friendship Group Co-Chairs.

The parties discussed bilateral relations and stated that the partnership and friendly relations go far dynamic.

The parties touched upon inter-Parliamentary cooperation and underlined the importance of Friendship Groups and exchange visits for the enhancement of friendship of the countries. The parties discussed the current situation and the challenges in the region.

Kobakhidze underlined the 26-century historical links between Georgia and Israel, saying they serve as motivation for bilateral relations, friendship and cooperation.

“We believe in strong cooperation between Georgia and Israel. We are motivated to be the reliable partner of Israel and it is our strategic interest. Our Delegation is composed of 11 members, which demonstrates interest in cooperation with Israel, as well as the love of Georgian people to the Israeli nation and country,” he said.

Yuli-Yoel Edelstein confirmed support of Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

“I believe that relations between our countries are strong and stable. Our role is not only to speak about the gaps to be improved but about what we can do in addition to further enhance our relations,” he stated.

Moreover, Kobakhidze held a meeting with Opposition Leader, Isaac Herzog to discuss bilateral relations and parliamentary cooperation.

During the visit, the Georgian Parliament Chair met the President of Israel, Reuven Rivlin. The sides talked about the historical and close friendship between the two countries and discussed the prospects of deepening cooperation in different directions. Discussions touched upon the situation in Georgia and Israel, as well as challenges in security, with an emphasis on the importance of coordinated cooperation and deepening relations between the Georgian Parliament and the Knesset of the State of Israel. As noted, the parliamentary friendship groups will actively work in this direction. In addition, the importance of cooperation in the field of intercultural relations and tourism was also discussed.

“Georgia is a reliable partner and an important contributor to global security issues,” Rivlin said at the meeting.

The parliamentary delegation held a meeting with the Friendship Group of Knesset Parliament of Georgia seeing recent developments in Georgian Parliament and the Constitution Reform process as the main topics covered.

Thea Morrison