Georgia | Lithuania |
---|---|
Diplomatic mission | |
Embassy of Georgia, Vilnius | Embassy of Lithuania, Tbilisi |
Georgia-Lithuania relations refers to bilateral relations between Georgia and Lithuania. Lithuania is a member of the European Union, which Georgia applied for in 2022. Both nations are members of the Council of Europe.
Diplomatic relations between Georgia and the Republic of Lithuania were established on 16 September 1994. [1]
On 9 August 2018, Lithuania introduced migration restrictions on individuals placed on the Otkhozoria–Tatunashvili List, a list of individuals the Georgian Parliament considers to have 'violated the rights of Georgian citizens in the Georgian occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali'. [2]
In December 2020, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius called for NATO to cooperate more closely with Georgia and Ukraine and maintain the 'open door' policy. [3]
On 25 February 2021, in response to the detention of Nika Melia, Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania issued a joint statement expressing "serious concerns over the political situation developing in Georgia" and urging "all political forces to act with restraint, de-escalate the situation and seek [a] constructive solution". [4] Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda offered to act as a mediator to resolve the situation. [5] [6]
Georgia's location, nestled between the Black Sea, Russia, and Turkey, renders it strategically important. It is developing as the gateway from the Black Sea to the Caucasus and the larger Caspian region, but also serves as a buffer between Russia and Turkey. Georgia has a long and tumultuous relationship with Russia, but it is reaching out to its other neighbours and looking to the West in search of alternatives and opportunities. It signed a partnership and cooperation agreement with the European Union, participates in the Partnership for Peace, and encourages foreign investment. France, Germany, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States all have embassies in Tbilisi. Georgia in 2004-2008 sought to become a member of NATO, but did not succeed in the face of strong Russian opposition.
The foreign relations of the Russian Federation is the policy arm of the government of Russia which guides its interactions with other nations, their citizens, and foreign organizations. This article covers the foreign policy of the Russian Federation since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in late 1991. At present, Russia has no diplomatic relations with Ukraine due to its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Other than Ukraine, Russia also has no diplomatic relations with Georgia, Bhutan, Federated States of Micronesia and Solomon Islands.
Ukraine has formal relations with many nations and in recent decades has been establishing diplomatic relations with an expanding circle of nations. The foreign relations of Ukraine are guided by a number of key priorities outlined in the foreign policy of Ukraine.
Georgia and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) enjoy cordial relations. Georgia is not currently a member of NATO, but has been promised by NATO to be admitted in the future.
Since their independence from the Soviet Union, Georgia and Ukraine have forged close political and cultural relations. The diplomatic relations between the two nations are realized at the level of embassies and consulates. Due to the prosecution in Georgia of Georgian/Ukrainian politician Mikheil Saakashvili and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations between the two countries have soured significantly.
Relations between the countries of Georgia and the United States continue to be very close and encompass multiple areas of bilateral cooperation. One of the key U.S. allies in Eastern Europe, Georgia was the third largest troop contributor in the Iraq War and the largest per-capita contributor to the U.S. led mission in Afghanistan. The United States for its part is actively assisting Georgia in strengthening its state institutions in face of increasing pressure from its northern neighbor Russia and has provided the country with financial assistance in excess of 3 billion dollars since 1991. Since 2009, Georgian–American relations are streamlined by the U.S.–Georgia Charter on Strategic Partnership, which created four bilateral working groups on priority areas of democracy; defense and security; economic, trade, energy issues, people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
Poland–Ukraine relations revived on an international basis soon after Ukraine gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Various controversies from the shared history of the two countries' peoples occasionally resurface in Polish–Ukrainian relations, but they tend not to have a major influence on the bilateral relations of Poland and Ukraine.
Relations between Ukraine and the United Kingdom have existed in one form or another since Ukrainian independence in 1991. The two countries have ties across political, military, social and economic spheres. The UK hosts up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees giving it the 8th largest Ukrainian migrant population in Europe.
Relations between Ukraine and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) started in 1991. Ukraine applied to integrate with a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP) in 2008. Plans for NATO membership were shelved by Ukraine following the 2010 presidential election in which Viktor Yanukovych, who preferred to keep the country closer to Russia, was elected President. Yanukovych fled Ukraine in February 2014 during the Revolution of Dignity. The interim Yatsenyuk Government initially said that it had no plans to join NATO. However, following the Russian annexation of Crimea and Russian military support for armed separatists in eastern Ukraine, the Second Yatsenyuk Government made joining NATO a priority. In February 2019, the Ukrainian parliament voted to amend the Constitution of Ukraine to state Ukraine's goal of NATO and European Union membership.
Abkhazia and South Ossetia are disputed territories in the Caucasus. Most countries recognise them as part of Georgia, while Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru, and Syria regard them as independent. Russia's initial recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia occurred in the aftermath of the Russo-Georgian War in 2008. The government of Georgia considers the republics to be Russian-occupied territories.
Relations between the NATO military alliance and the Russian Federation were established in 1991 within the framework of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. In 1994, Russia joined the Partnership for Peace program, and on 27 May 1997, the NATO–Russia Founding Act (NRFA) was signed at the 1997 Paris NATO Summit in France, enabling the creation of the NATO–Russia Permanent Joint Council (NRPJC). Through the early part of 2010s NATO and Russia signed several additional agreements on cooperation. The NRPJC was replaced in 2002 by the NATO–Russia Council (NRC), which was established in an effort to partner on security issues and joint projects together. Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations became very tense after the NATO military alliance imposed sanctions against Russia. Russia placed member states of NATO on a list of "unfriendly countries" along with Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, the United States, European Union members, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Micronesia and Ukraine.
Lithuania–Ukraine relations are foreign relations between Lithuania and Ukraine. Both countries are members of the Lublin Triangle, OSCE, Council of Europe, World Trade Organization and United Nations. Lithuania supports Ukraine's European Union and NATO membership. Lithuania has an embassy in Kyiv and Ukraine has an embassy in Vilnius.
Official relations between Moldova and NATO began in 1992 when Moldova joined the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. However, as Moldova's neutrality is enshrined in its constitution, there are no official plans for Moldova to join the organization.
Denmark–Lithuania relations refers to the historical and current diplomatic relations between Denmark and Lithuania. Lithuania has an embassy in Copenhagen, and Denmark has an embassy in Vilnius. Denmark first recognized Lithuania in 1921 and again on 28 February 1991 after the fall of the Soviet Union. Diplomatic relations were established on 24 August 1991. Both countries are members of the European Union, NATO, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and Council of Europe.
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia is a political party in Georgia. The party was established on 19 April 2012 by the billionaire businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili. Georgian Dream and its partners in a coalition also named Georgian Dream won majorities in the 2012, 2016, and 2020 general elections. The party is currently led by Irakli Kobakhidze as Party Chairman and Irakli Garibashvili as Prime Minister.
Irakli Garibashvili is a Georgian politician and a former business executive who has served as the prime minister of Georgia since 22 February 2021. He previously served as prime minister from 20 November 2013 until his resignation on 30 December 2015. Garibashvili is a member of the Georgian Dream party. He entered politics with his long-time associate Bidzina Ivanishvili, in October 2012.
Russian-occupied territories in Georgia are areas of Georgia that have been occupied by Russia after the Russo-Georgian War in 2008. They consist of the regions of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia and the former South Ossetian Autonomous Region of Soviet Georgia, whose status is a matter of international dispute.
Ingrida Šimonytė is a Lithuanian politician, public servant and economist who is the 17th and current prime minister of Lithuania since 11 December 2020. She has been a Member of the Seimas for the Antakalnis constituency since 2016 and was Minister of Finance in the second Kubilius cabinet from 2009 until 2012. Šimonytė was a candidate in the 2019 presidential election, but lost in the second round runoff to Gitanas Nausėda. She has been a member of Homeland Union since 2022, having previously been an independent politician.
Mikheil Janelidze is a chairman of Center for European Governance & Economy. He is a former Georgian government official who served as Vice Prime Minister (2017–2018), Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015–2018), First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015) and Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia (2011-2015).
On 24 February 2022, the Lithuanian authorities declared a state of emergency in the country due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said that he condemned the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, and also said that after Russia started a war against Ukraine, NATO should clearly state that Russia is a serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security.