Geocase has held a webinar on Georgia-Austria bilateral relations in the aftermath of Austrian Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer's visit to Georgia.
 

H.E. Thomas Mühlmann, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Austria to Georgia, was a special guest and a speaker of the discussions, while the Geocase Chairman Victor Kipiani moderated the event.
 

Ambassador Mühlmann overviewed Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer's recent official visit to Tbilisi and noted that it was a historic visit yet again emphasized Austria’s support of the territorial integrity of Georgia and its path towards the European Union integration. 
 

According to Ambassador Mühlmann, the Chancellor brought three main messages to Georgia: 1) the importance of fulfilment of the twelve conditions by the European Union, 2) appreciation that the financial sanctions imposed against Russia are not circumvented on Georgia’s territory, and 3) Austria’s unwavering support of Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.  
 

During his presentation, H.E. Thomas Mühlmann spoke about a steady increase in the economic relations between Georgia and Austria over the past couple of years despite the Covid crisis and the Austrian companies intend to invest more in Georgia’s logistic and tourist sector because they see Georgia as a hub, especially after the changes in the supply chain due to the Russian aggression and war against Ukraine.
 

He also mentioned that the Austrian Embassy intends to organize a business event that will give the Georgian and Austrian business representatives the opportunity to meet and discuss some points of cooperation. According to the Ambassador, such kind of activities will facilitate business-to-business dialogue and help to foster economic relations between the countries. 
 

The discussions also covered Georgia’s objective to receive the EU membership candidacy status as well as the country’s progress in the process of fulfilling the twelve conditions by the EU Commission. 
 

 “European Union has given a very clear message and now it’s entirely on your shoulders to move forward. You are not alone in the European integration path, the European Commission and the member states will guide you. We will accompany you in this process but important thing is that things need to be done by Georgia. It isn’t that partners will do it for you as it is your generational choice to strive for European rapprochement”, - noted Ambassador Mühlmann.
 

Victor Kipiani thanked the Ambassador for Austria’s unwavering support of Georgia, especially in a time full of challenges. “Those challenges really put us all on the same page in terms of uniting our efforts to overcome the obstacles and to strive for a better world, for relatively long-term and stable peace and prosperity in Europe.” – he noted. 

Watch the webinar recording