EAM Jaishankar holds bilateral talks with Georgia counterpart, invites him to visit India

External Affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar who is on a two-day visit to Georgia, met Georgia’s Vice Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H.E. Mr. David Zalkaliani and held a constructive discussion with him. After the meeting, Dr Jaishankar said that the discussion during the meet was very good and they touched upon several topics including, tourism, connectivity, economic cooperation, and trade etc. 

He also acknowledged that Georgia is running some big Indian projects. He told ANI, “It was a very good discussion. We discussed economic cooperation, tourism, trade & connectivity. Our relationship is doing well. There're some big Indian projects in Georgia.”

The minister of foreign affairs also invited the Vice Prime Minister to India with a business delegation. He added, that people in India need more awareness about Georgia and ease of doing business in the country. He emphasised that his visit will open more avenues in the future for both countries.

During his visit, he also met representatives of the Indian community from the country's Tsnori, Khaketi on Saturday. In a tweet, he expressed his happiness after meeting the Indian community in Georgia. Taking to Twitter, EAM Jaishankar wrote, "As I begin the day, nice to meet Indian Community representatives from Tsnori, Khaketi. Their hard work in the agriculture sector has earned a good name, enterprising Indians are our global bridge."

The external affairs minister praised the Indian community in Georgia and said, they are working hard and their contribution in the agriculture sector has earned a lot of recognition. The foreign affairs minister was invited by his counterpart in Georgia David Zalkaliani, while he was in Moscow. He had arrived in the country on Friday on a two-day visit.

India gifts Georgia Holy relics of St.Queen Ketevan

As a souvenir, Jaishankar handed over a holy relic of Ketevan the Martyr found in India. Ketevan was the 17th-century queen of the Khaketi region, also revered as a saint by the Georgian Orthodox church. "Warmly welcomed in Tbilisi by FM David Zalkaliani blessed to hand over the holy relics of St. Queen Ketevan to the people of Georgia. An emotional moment," Jaishankar said in an earlier tweet. 

Thanking EAM, Georgia’s David Zalkaliani said that this diplomatic visit will play a huge role in strengthening ties between both countries and taking the relationship to another level.

EAM's first visit to Georgia 40 years after Vajpayee in 1978 

In over 40 years, after former Indian EAM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s visit, this is India’s first visit to Georgia. Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited the country in June 1978 as India’s EAM. After that, Georgian Foreign Minister Irakli Menagarishvili and External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh had met in New Delhi.

(Image: @S Jaishankar/ Twitter)