The U.S. Department of State released the details about the forthcoming visit of Mike Pompeo, U.S. Secretary of State to Georgia.

Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo will travel to France, Turkey, Georgia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia November 13 – 23.

The Secretary’s last stop in Europe will be Tbilisi, Georgia to meet with President Zurabishvili, Prime Minister Gakharia, and Foreign Minister Zalkaliani, to express our support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, to urge further progress in democratic reforms. He will also meet with the Patriarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church, His Holiness Ilia II.

“In Georgia, of course, we’re committed to helping Georgia deepen its Euro-Atlantic ties and strengthen its democratic institutions and processes.  In fact, the second round of Georgian parliamentary elections for some 16 seats, I believe, that will have runoffs is going to be held November 21st.  And of course, as we’ve said, free and fair electoral processes are critical for democracy in Georgia and the people of Georgia are actively participating in that process.

We’ll of course use this as an opportunity to reaffirm our support of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.  And once again, I would unequivocally note that we condemn Russia’s invasion in 2008 of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which still remain occupied by Russia.

Finally, the Secretary will be meeting with representatives of Georgia’s vibrant civil society to hear their views on rule of law, on judicial independence, and an independent judiciary as part of the integral process, free adjudication of processes in the Georgian democracy, and respect for human and economic rights,” reads the information published in the official web-page of U.S. Department of State.

Mike Pompeo, U.S. Secretary of State, will arrive in Georgia with 2-day visit on November 17.