Otar Shamugia meets US Ambassador Robin Dunnigan

Tbilisi: Otar Shamugia, Georgian Minister of Environment and Agriculture Otar Shamugia met with Robin Dunnigan United States Emergency and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Georgia. They discussed the successful cooperation and coordination in the field of Environment Protection and Agriculture.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister Otar Shamugia thanked the Ambassador for the support that the United States has been providing over the years to Georgia towards rural and agricultural development and environmental protection.

Otar Shamugia also noted, ” we have made great progress in terms of agriculture and environmental protection. With the support of our partner and friend countries particularly the EU(European Union) and the US(United States of America), we have made many reforms and legislative and institutional changes that have led to significant positive results in Georgia. We are waiting for EU candidate country status, after which we will start working on reforms and legislative approximation. We are fully prepared to deepen our relationship with the United States of America on both agriculture and environmental protection, which will really help us to move forward”.

At the same time, the meeting discussed on priority future cooperation in Georgia and the United States of America. They also discussed issues of deepening trade relations, including the growth of Georgian wine exports, diversification of markets and food security, as well as environmental protection.

On the other hand, US Ambassador Robin Dunnigan wished Georgia success in the process of European integration and expressed readiness to support the Ministry in the implementation of harmonisation of agriculture policies with European standards.

US Ambassador also stated, “At this productive meeting, we talked about expanding trade in agricultural products which means more Georgian products in America and more American products to Georgia. We also discussed the support provided by the United States to Georgian farmers for more efficient production of products, allowing them to sell their products both locally and abroad with higher profit margins. Both countries have a strong collaboration within the agricultural sector and are ready to deepen that collaboration”.

She also said that there is every possibility that this cooperation between the two countries will see new heights in future. As per US Ambassador, the USA is committed to supporting Georgia, especially in the Agriculture sector, to make the agriculture sector more beneficial.

Besides these two, this meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Environment and Agriculture and the US Embassy.