Marco Rubio: Georgian government makes steps indicating it wants to improve relations with U.S. Hopefully, we can build on that basis

“The Georgian government has made some steps indicating to us that they want to improve their relations with the United States,” said Marco Rubio, United States Secretary of State, in response to the question from Congressman Joe Wilson during the meeting of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

According to Marco Rubio, the Georgian authorities were informed what needed to be done to improve relations, and some positive responses were received.

Marco Rubio stated that the U.S. hopes that “perhaps it is possible to change the trajectory not just of our relationship with Georgia, but of their behavior.”

Joe Wilson’s question was: “You achieved historic unity in the Middle East, where every country, except Georgia, supports American efforts against Iran and its nuclear capabilities. And in Europe, NATO and the EU are united as never before, promoting defense increases for ‘peace through strength’ to promote Ukraine’s victory over war criminal Putin.

With that in mind, another region is the South Caucasus, which is critical to the opportunity for the Trump Route that you’ve achieved with Prime Minister Pashinyan of Armenia and President Aliyev of Azerbaijan. What a great achievement that is. With that in mind, though, the pro-Iranian regime and the Chinese Communist Party-supported Georgian Dream government, which is illegitimate, threaten American access. There was a rigged election in Georgia. They’re facilitating the Islamic Revolutionary Guard and evading sanctions to Tehran. What do you believe should be done to address the rapidly expanding radicalization promoted by the Georgian Dream government in the Republic of Georgia?”

Marco Rubio responded: “On Georgia, you’re right. Everything you just outlined is our preexisting concern. Since that time, they have made some steps indicating to us that they want to improve their relations with the United States. We’ve outlined to them what that would take and what that would require.

We’ve received some positive responses. And so our hope is that we can see a change of trajectory in the case of Georgia from where it is today. We obviously understand all the things you’ve just laid out as being preexisting problems for us. They’ve asked us, ‘What will it take to have a better relationship with the United States?’ We’ve responded, and hopefully, we can build on that basis and, and perhaps change the trajectory, not just of our relationship with Georgia, but of their behavior.”