World Leaders Congratulate Georgia on Independence Day

Foreign heads of state, foreign ministers, and officials have congratulated Georgia on its 103rd anniversary of the proclamation of independence.

Polish President Andrzej Duda, the only foreign head of state visiting Tbilisi today, said at the Freedom Square of the Georgian capital that “Our unity and solidarity must stand against any imperial march,” referring to Russia’s assertive stance in the region. 

“Poland and Poles will always be a reliable ally for Georgia, an ally that will use all of its possibilities to stand up for Georgia ally, and promote Georgia’s integration into Euro-Atlantic [community],” stressed President Duda, adding that “there is enough room in the united Europe and NATO to accommodate our friends from Eastern Europe, to accommodate Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova.” 

The press office of the Government of Georgia reported that PM Irakli Garibashvili received congratulations on Independence Day from the U.S. President, Joe Biden. President Biden said the U.S. stands by Georgia as the latter advances on the road to Euro-Atlantic integration, according to the report. 

Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State also congratulated the people of Georgia on Independence Day, noting the U.S. firmly supports Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and condemns Russia’s occupation of Georgia’s Abkhazia and Tskhinvali/South Ossetia regions.

“The United States and Georgia enjoy a strategic partnership that is based on shared values.  In the year ahead, we look forward to supporting Georgia as it works to strengthen democratic processes, create a more independent judiciary, and foster a fully engaged parliament,” highlighted Secretary Blinken.

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom also sent a message of congratulations to Georgia.

European Council President Charles Michel took to Twitter to mark the day, saying the EU “stands by Georgia firmly in friendship and in support of its territorial integrity and its ambitious reforms agenda.”

French President Emmanuel Macron sent a letter of congratulations to his Georgian colleague Salome Zurabishvili. “Georgia has demonstrated its commitment to democracy, to rapprochement with the EU and NATO and of the pursuit of reforms,” highlighted President Macron. 

In his congratulatory letter to President Zurabishvili, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said “the scope of our inter-state relations endowed with rich traditions and developing based on such a solid foundation Is ever-expanding, evolving into a strategic partnership today.”

President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nausėda made a video address, highlighting that “my country will never come to terms with the Russian occupation of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali.” “Georgian sovereignty and territorial intergrity are fundamentally important to us.”

President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal, Acting Moldovan PM Aureliu Ciocoi, Bulgarian PM Stefan Yanev, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, PM of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Li Keqiang, the premier of the State Council of China, among others, congratulated on May 26 to Prime Minister Garibashvili, as reported by the Government’s press office. 

Guðni Jóhannesson, President of Iceland, and multiple foreign ministries and officials took to Twitter to congratulate Georgian colleague:

Foreign Ministry of Armenia:

Slovenian MFA:

Albanian Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs:

Foreign Ministry of Turkey:

Foreign Ministry of Ukraine:

Foreign Ministry of Estonia:

Foreign Ministry of Romania:

Foreign Ministry of Lithuania:

Foreign Ministry of Latvia:

Foreign Ministry of Serbia:

Foreign Ministry of Paraguay:

Viola von Cramon-Taubadel (Germany, The Greens/EFA), leading MEP on EU-Georgia relations:

Sven Mikser, (S&D, Estonia), leading MEP on EU-Georgia relations:

The Georgian National Council proclaimed on May 26, 1918, the independence of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, the first social democratic state in Europe. Its independence was extinguished by the military invasion of Soviet Russia’s Bolshevik Red Army on February 25, 1921. The country declared its independence to be restored on April 9, 1991, based on the May 26, 1918, declaration.

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