Mikheil Janelidze has discussed priority areas of co-operation during his meeting with Harlem Désir

The FINANCIAL — As part of his official visit to France, Georgian Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze held a meeting with Secretary of State for European Affairs of France Harlem Désir.

The sides noted with satisfaction the increasing dynamics of bilateral relations between the two countries reaffirming their readiness to further deepen co-operation in tourism, education and other areas. The Secretary of State expressed his interest in Georgia’s energy, infrastructure, tourism and agriculture sectors. They stressed the importance of the South Caucasus Office of the Agency of French Development (AFD) in Georgia which will contribute to the attraction of French investments to Georgia. Special note was taken of the investments already made in Georgia and the of the French companies operation in the Georgian market.

Mikheil Janelidze briefed the French Secretary of State on the Georgian Government’s  plans to improve business environment in the country and to further develop transit infrastructure of Georgia, according to MFA of Georgia.

Special attention was paid to the process of Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration. Harlem Désir congratulated Mikheil Janelidze on the European Parliament’s decision to grant Georgia visa-free travel with Europe. The Georgian Foreign Minister, for his part, thanked his French colleague for his active support of Georgia’s visa liberalization. Talking points also included high-level co-operation in the areas of defence and security. The French Secretary of State reaffirmed the importance of Georgia’s participation in the peacekeeping operations in the Central African Republic and Mali and thanked the Georgian side for making its own contribution towards strengthening security in Europe and the region as a whole.

The sides spoke about the situation in Georgia’s occupied territories. Mikheil Janelidze provided his French colleague with information regarding the Georgian Government’s projects aimed at facilitating the process of confidence building between the war-torn communities living on both sides of the occupation line. He highlighted the importance of extending benefits of European integration to the population living in the occupied territories.

Discussions during the meeting also focused on Georgian-Russian relations and the security situation in the region.