Policy paper

Fourth round of the UK-Georgia Wardrop Strategic Dialogue: joint communique

Published 25 October 2017

On 23-24 October 2017, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP welcomed the Vice Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Georgia, HE Mikheil Janelidze, for a bilateral visit to the UK, while the Secretary of State for Defence, the Rt Hon Sir Michael Fallon MP welcomed Georgia’s Defence Minister, HE Levan Izoria. The visits took place in parallel with the fourth round of the UK-Georgia “Wardrop Strategic Dialogue”, led by the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the Rt Hon Sir Alan Duncan MP and the Vice Prime Minister of Georgia, HE Mikheil Janelidze. The dialogue is named after Sir Oliver Wardrop, the connoisseur of the Georgian language and culture who was posted to Tbilisi as the UK’s first Chief Commissioner of the Transcaucasus from 1919-1920.

During his visit to the UK, HE Vice Prime Minister Mikheil Janelidze also had a bilateral meeting with Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson during which they exchanged views on regional political and security issues and the opportunities for future security and economic cooperation. The Foreign Ministers underlined their commitment to strengthen relations further and emphasised the continued importance of political dialogue and high-level visits.

Discussions at a private lunch hosted by Sir Alan Duncan, with participation of the State Minister for reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia HE Ketevan Tsikhelashvili explored avenues for conflict resolution and reconciliation. HE Vice Prime Minister Mikheil Janelidze and Sir Alan Duncan co-hosted a reception at Lancaster House.

HE Defence Minister Levan Izoria held a bilateral meeting with the Secretary of State for Defence Sir Michael Fallon, in which they discussed the valuable contribution of Georgia to the Resolute Support Mission to Afghanistan and the continued reform and capability improvements in Georgia’s Armed Forces that will enhance co-operation with NATO. The UK’s engagement with Georgia’s military capacity-building and defence reform, both direct and through NATO initiatives, was enshrined in the signing of the 2017/2018 Defence Cooperation Plan.

The British Ambassador to Georgia HE Justin McKenzie Smith and the Ambassador of Georgia to the UK HE Tamar Beruchashvili participated in all meetings.

1. Summary

Both sides welcomed progress since the last round of Wardrop Dialogue Meeting in Tbilisi on November 30, 2016. Substantive discussions during the upgraded Wardrop Strategic Dialogue emphasised the breadth and expanding scope of bilateral relations. They covered current and future UK-Georgia cooperation in the political, defence and security policy spheres; an exchange of views on regional political and security developments; and political developments in both countries including Georgia’s democratic transformation and ambitious reforms and Britain’s continued commitment to the region as it leaves the EU. As part of the Dialogue, the two sides agreed to commence exploratory talks on the new UK-Georgia bilateral agreement to act as a comprehensive framework for the relationship following the UK’s departure from the EU. Reflecting the growing economic dimension to the bilateral relationship, the Lord Mayor of the City of London hosted a roundtable on commercial opportunities. At the roundtable, the two sides welcomed the UK Prime Minister’s newly-appointed Trade Envoy, the Rt Hon Mark Pritchard MP. Underlining the growing people-to-people links, the British Council hosted a final session which focused on opportunities for cooperation in the education and creative industries sectors. As part of the Dialogue, the UK announced an expansion of British Council work in Georgia, including the establishment of English Language clubs throughout Georgia. Defence Ministers signed a Defence Cooperation Plan between the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom and the Ministry of Defence of Georgia for 2017/2018. A Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and Wilton Park for cooperation and partnership in convening international discussion events was also signed. The prospects of cooperation between twinned cities of Georgia and the UK were discussed, including preparations for celebrations in 2018 of the 30th anniversary of Tbilisi-Bristol twining partnership.

2. Ministerial Plenary Session

In the Ministerial Plenary Session, the Minister for Europe and the Americas, the Rt Hon Sir Alan Duncan MP, reaffirmed the UK’s steadfast support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and its policy towards peaceful conflict resolution. He also expressed the UK’s strong interest in the Georgian Government’s plans for further engagement with communities in the regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia. He commended Georgia’s commitment to democratic processes, reaffirmed that the UK’s support for its aspirations towards European and Euro-Atlantic integration would not change, and outlined the areas where the UK was offering practical support. Vice Prime Minister HE Mikheil Janelidze highlighted the severe security and human rights situation in the regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia and expressed high appreciation for UK’s valuable contribution to the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia. He stressed the need for Russian military forces to withdraw from Georgia and the importance of ensuring the right of safe and dignified return for Internally Displaced Persons and refugees. The Vice Prime Minister appreciated the strong support of the UK Government for Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration and underlined the benefits received from the assistance of the Good Governance Fund.

The two sides discussed current and potential future cooperation on political, security, foreign and defence issues; business and economic cooperation; and further expanding people-to-people ties through links in the education, cultural and creative sectors.

Both sides agreed to start technical consultations by the end of the year on maintaining the free trade regime.

3. Political Pillar

In the Political discussions, the British side expressed its readiness for maintaining full bilateral relations and cooperation after the UK leaves the EU and emphasised its strong continuing support for the reforms aimed at Georgia’s European integration aspirations. In this context, the UK welcomed Georgia’s commitment to democratic processes which were evidenced in the peaceful and fair election environment in the period immediately preceding the Wardrop Dialogue and in the government’s efforts to develop political consensus on Constitutional Reform. The Georgian side outlined progress on implementation of its 4-Point Reform Plan since last year’s Wardrop Dialogue and plans for future reform, which the UK continues to support through its Good Governance Fund. Both sides recognised the proactive work undertaken by Georgia to maintain transparency and openness, ensuring free access to information and setting high standards in the field of Open Governance that had been achieved with support from the Good Governance Fund.

The UK also reiterated its strong support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, and shared Georgian concerns over the deteriorating human rights situation and increased Russian military presence in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia. The UK restated its support for the Geneva International Discussions, full implementation of the EU mediated 12 August 2008 Ceasefire Agreement and the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Georgia, based on full respect for fundamental norms and principles of international law. The UK recalled the right of IDPs and refugees to a safe and dignified return and offered its full support for Georgia’s engagement policy with the communities in the conflict-affected regions. Georgia expressed its appreciation for the UK’s unwavering support and contribution to the peaceful conflict resolution. The Georgian side welcomed the inclusion of the regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia in the FCO’s Annual Human Rights Report 2016 and expressed readiness to continue regular dialogue on this matter.

Both sides agreed that multilateral fora provide important platforms for raising concerns about regional and global challenges and seeking solutions.

4. Defence Security and Foreign Policy Pillar

In the Defence, Security and Foreign Policy discussions, the two sides welcomed the strong security and defence relationship between their two governments, which was marked by the signing of a Defence Cooperation Plan between the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom and the Ministry of Defence of Georgia for 2017/2018 by HE Defence Minister Levan Izoria and Secretary of State for Defence Sir Michael Fallon. The UK expressed its appreciation for Georgia’s continuing contribution to the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan and reaffirmed its strong support to the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package implementation. Discussions also covered cooperation in the areas of cyber security, crime and crisis management and the potential for a future agreement on security issues. After covering developments in regional relations, the two sides agreed that the upcoming Eastern Partnership Summit on 24 November provided an opportunity to take note of the positive relationship between the EU and the nations of the Eastern Partnership.

5. Economic and Commercial Pillar

On Economic and Commercial issues, a panel hosted by the Lord Mayor of the City of London, reflecting the deepening business ties between the two countries, discussed existing and potential future opportunities in the areas of financial and professional services, infrastructure, retail and education. Looking ahead, both sides reiterated their shared objective to strengthen bilateral trade and investment ties, including through newly established ties with the Chambers of Commerce of Scotland and Wales. The Georgian side highlighted opportunities for cooperation in the field of innovation, including high interest to partner with “Innovate UK”. Georgia welcomed the appointment of Mark Pritchard MP as the UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy for Georgia and appreciated his early visit to Tbilisi to discuss enhancing trade cooperation. Participants discussed the possibility of a UK trade mission to Georgia in 2018. A small group of UK businesses will make a scoping visit to Tbilisi on 26-27 October with that aim.

6. People to People Pillar

Discussions in the People to People session focused on cooperation in the education sector, including on English-language teaching. The UK announced new funding for the establishment of English language clubs throughout Georgia. The sides reviewed higher education priorities in Georgia, including cooperation in quality assurance, students/faculty exchange programmes, joint programmes, and welcomed increased presence of UK universities in Georgia. The importance of further enhancement of student exchanges was welcomed including the funding of 14 Chevening Scholarships in the current academic year. Special consideration was given to the cooperation in the field of science and technology, notably development of joint research programmes/projects between the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation and British academic institutions, including under the Horizon 2020 programme and Erasmus +. Successful ongoing cooperation as well as future projects between the Georgian National Centre for Disease Control and the British Medical Journal was also presented.

It was recognized that Georgia and the UK share strong and lasting cultural links. In this spirit of cooperation and friendship both countries agreed to strengthen these links and to continue to identify new areas of collaboration, especially development of creative industries in Georgia.

It was agreed that both sides will explore the opportunities for launching “The Georgian Seasons in the UK” and “The UK Seasons in Georgia”. Both sides also welcomed the intensification of partnerships between the twinned cities of Tbilisi-Bristol, Kutaisi-Newport and Newcastle-Akhaltsikhe. Both sides agreed to capitalise on the various dimensions of the partnerships to mark the 30th anniversary of Tbilisi-Bristol twining partnership in 2018.

The UK and Georgia looked forward to the continued strengthening of the strategic bilateral partnership and holding the next Wardrop Strategic Dialogue 2018 in Tbilisi.