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Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili said strengthening relations with Türkiye is more important than ever in a world marked by conflicts and violations of international law, calling President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "a great friend."
"In a world where conflicts, disputes, violations of international law and global problems are taking place, further strengthening relations between Türkiye and Georgia is more important than ever," Kavelashvili told Türkiye's state-run Anadolu Agency (AA) on the sidelines of the COP31 climate conference in Antalya.
"There is extremely close and strong cooperation between our countries. This cooperation manifests itself in many different areas," he said, adding that ties deepen each year and expand into new fields.
"I see President Erdogan as a great friend. At the basis of our personal friendship lie the deep-rooted friendship and strong strategic partnership relations between Georgia and Türkiye," Kavelashvili said after meeting President Erdogan.
"Most importantly, our countries have shared values and similar political approaches. Both countries attach great importance to protecting their national identities, values and traditions, and maintaining peace and stability," he said.
"The policies we pursue are shaped on the basis of mutual respect and trust. The strong dialogue and trust-based relations between the leaders of the two countries make an important contribution to the development of cooperation in all areas," the Georgian president said.
Kavelashvili said human values must come first.
"As the President emphasized in his opening speech yesterday, attaching importance to human values, protecting and observing them is of great importance," he said, adding this matters for both bilateral ties and regional peace, stability and cooperation.
"I would like to congratulate the Turkish government and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the successful holding of the COP31 climate conference," Kavelashvili said.
"Türkiye is not only hosting a successful organization but is also making significant efforts to contribute to solving these problems and to take concrete steps in this direction. We appreciate these efforts," the Georgian president noted.
The two countries are cooperating on climate change and renewable energy, working on joint solutions especially in energy efficiency, he said, adding Georgia is ready to deepen environmental cooperation with Türkiye and others.
Both countries are exposed to natural disaster risks, with climate change effects appearing as disasters in recent years, Kavelashvili said, calling for more information and experience sharing on disaster risk reduction and preparedness, stronger coordination and attention to agriculture and food security.
"As Georgia and Türkiye, we are not only neighboring countries but also two countries that stand out in terms of biodiversity and natural landscape richness. Some regions of our countries are very similar in terms of their natural structures and landscape features," he said.
"As President Erdogan also said, we all have a common sky and a common earth. Therefore, it is not possible to think that pollution in my country’s sea will not affect the neighboring country’s sea," he said, calling for shared responsibility to protect common natural heritage as Türkiye-Georgia ties grow.
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