In the framework of the visit of the Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili to China the two sides issued today the joint statement on establishing Strategic Partnership. According to the PM's office, the statement consists of four parts: political domain, economic domain, people-to-people relations and cultural domain, and international cooperation domain.

"We have no objection to investments or engagements by any other country, including from the PRC. The concerns we have had are making sure these activities are done transparently and according to the rule of law, with sustainable financing, and with respect for the autonomy of aid recipients so there are not any political strings attached.

Ultimately, countries will make their sovereign decisions about with whom they want to do business or invest.

The PRC often makes many promises in exchange for diplomatic recognition that ultimately remain unfulfilled. We will continue to monitor next steps closely," a State Department spokesperson told the Accent.

When asked about the possible involvement of Chinese companies in the Anaklia deep sea port project, the State Department refered the Accent to U.S. Ambassador Kelly Degnan’s remarks on this matter.

"The United States has been a strong supporter Anaklia deep water port for years because we think that it can be a very important contribution to Georgia’s orientation to the Black Sea. We can all see now that if Anaklia had been completed last year as was originally planned, it would be a huge contribution as Georgia develops its role in the middle corridor, bringing goods from Central Asia through to Europe. This is critical infrastructure for Georgia to development develop, and that’s why the United States has been encouraging the development of an Anaklia port for quite some time. My understanding is there are a number of global qualified port operators that are interested in Anaklia, and that the government plans to move forward with a tender early next year. Of course, we think that Anaklia will bring not only a big contribution to Georgia’s economy, but also will create some good jobs for Georgians in that region and beyond. So, we remain big supporters of the development of Anaklia deep water port, done in a way that is in the best interests of the country of Georgia, and that protects Georgia’s critical infrastructure," Ambassador Degnan told reporters on November 28 2022.