China, Georgia announce upgrade of ties to comprehensive strategic partnership

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili exchanged congratulations on Tuesday over the 34th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries, and jointly announced the elevation of bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. 

In his congratulatory message, Xi said that China and Georgia, over the past 34 years, have consistently upheld the principles of mutual respect, mutual trust and win-win cooperation, promoted the healthy and steady development of bilateral relations and achieved fruitful outcomes in cooperation across various fields.

Since the establishment of the strategic partnership between China and Georgia in 2023, the mutual political trust between the two sides has been further strengthened, practical cooperation has been accelerated, and multilateral collaboration has become more productive, Xi said.

No matter how the international landscape evolves, China always views its relations with Georgia from a strategic and long-term perspective, Xi said, adding that he would like to take the anniversary as an opportunity to announce, jointly with Kavelashvili, the upgrade of the two countries' ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

He expressed the belief that the elevation of bilateral ties will open up new prospects for the development of China-Georgia relations, write a new chapter in their traditional friendship, inject strong momentum into their mutually beneficial cooperation, and deliver more benefits to the peoples of the two countries.

Kavelashvili said in his message that over the past three decades and more, Georgia and China have established a lasting friendship, and bilateral relations have achieved remarkable progress based on mutual respect, mutual trust and constructive cooperation.

On the occasion of the 34th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, the two sides have made a joint decision to lift Georgia-China relations to the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership, Kavelashvili said, expressing his belief that it will create more opportunities for bilateral cooperation, bring greater benefits to both countries, and further strengthen the bonds of friendship between their peoples.