Visit of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, H.E. Ilia Darchiashvili
The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Micheál Martin TD, today met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Ilia Darchiashvili, during a series of engagements Minister Darchiashvili had during his visit to Ireland.
The Tánaiste and Foreign Minister Darchiashvili discussed the links between Ireland and Georgia, and opportunities for enhanced cooperation. They also discussed regional issues and the impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Tánaiste reiterated Ireland’s support for EU enlargement and Georgia’s European perspective, and recognised the progress Georgia has made in implementing the recommendations of the European Commission, while highlighting areas where further work is needed.
Speaking after the meeting, the Tánaiste said:
“It was a pleasure to welcome Minister Darchiashvili to Ireland, which provided an opportunity to discuss cooperation between Ireland and Georgia, and Georgia’s European perspective. Ireland is a strong supporter of EU enlargement, which has been transformational for us. The European Union is a Union of values, and I stressed the need for Georgia to continue to work on implementing reforms to align with these values.”
Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, Peter Burke TD, further discussed Georgia’s application to join the European Union in an earlier engagement with Minister Darchiashvili.
Minister Burke said:
“The visit by Foreign Minister Darchiashvili was a timely opportunity to discuss Georgia’s application to join the European Union. I welcomed the June 2022 decision of the European Council to recognise Georgia’s European perspective. Since then, I know the Georgian government has been working on 12 priority recommendations set out by the Commission. Further efforts are needed, particularly to demonstrate Georgia’s commitment to core EU values, and I discussed that work with Foreign Minister Darchiashvili when we met.”
Minister of State for Intentional Development and Diaspora, Sean Fleming TD, discussed the close relations between the Irish and Georgian peoples, and shared respective experiences of emigration and of diaspora engagement with Minister Darchiashvili. Minister Fleming outlined how Ireland engages with the large global Irish diaspora, including through the Government’s Emigrant Support Programme.
Speaking after his meeting with Minister Darchiashvili, Minister Fleming said:
“Ireland and Georgia have a shared history of emigration, and this was an important opportunity to exchange views. Ireland has invested heavily in its relationship with our diaspora and I discussed with Minister Darchiashvili our experience and the insights that we have gained over a number of decades of intensive diaspora engagement. We also discussed the Georgian diaspora in Ireland and their experiences of living here.”
Notes to editors:
- 2021 saw the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Georgia.
- On 23 June 2022, the European Council recognised the European Perspective for Georgia after Georgia’s membership application, and announced that the European Union is ready to grant the status of candidate country to Georgia once the twelve priorities specified in the Commission’s opinion on Georgia’s membership application have been addressed. The European Commission provided this opinion on 17 June 2022.
- The Tánaiste and Foreign Minister Darchiashvili also signed a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding between Ireland and Georgia, to establish regular bilateral consultations and strengthen cooperation in bilateral, regional, multilateral and international issues of common interest.