Targamadze impressions of US talks

On January 27 Leader of Christian Democratic Movement Giorgi Targamadze held a briefing at which he summed up a party delegation's visit to the United States. Targamadze stated that the White House does not regard Saakashvili and his team as the only people who can defend the democratic values of the country, adding that the USA is ready to support organisations in Georgia which try to strengthen democratic values even if they are trying to come to power themselves.

Targamadze noted that the present Government talks a lot about strengthening democracy in the country, but Christian Democrats think that this talk should not remain merely fashionable words. “We want to prove to our American colleagues that Georgia’s pro-Western orientation is firm and unchangeable,” Targamadze stated.

Targamadze hailed the US administration's interest in Georgian politics and said that while discussing security issues it became clear that the White House completely shares the interests of Georgia. Targamadze said that the development of democratic institutions was necessary to intensify cooperation with the United States. He added that during his meetings with U.S. officials he become convinced that the United States was not going to bargain with Russia about Georgia when discussing the security issues. He said that the White House is prepared to assist Georgia in reinforcing its defence capability.

One of the major issues the Christian Democrats discussed with their American colleagues was reestablishing monitoring missions in the conflict zones. “The Russian Federation can always present what is happening in the conflict zone as aggression by the Georgian side, which is why effective international monitors are very important,” Targamadze said.

The Christian Democrats plan to return to the United States in a few weeks with their candidate for Tbilisi Mayor Gia Chanturia.