Georgia pushes U.S. reset as middle corridor momentum gains momentum

Tbilisi is carefully rebuilding ties with Washington, using connectivity, regional diplomacy and security cooperation to position Georgia as a strategic partner at a time of shifting global trade and geopolitical priorities.

Georgia’s government has been unusually active on the diplomatic front this week - and intentionally so. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze met U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Sonata Coulter, reaffirming Tbilisi’s push to rebuild bilateral ties “from a clean slate, with a concrete roadmap focused on tangible results.” 

Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili added that a second American delegation is expected before the end of May, signalling that this is no longer merely diplomatic small talk. Things are moving.

The centrepiece of the discussions was connectivity, specifically Georgia’s role in the Middle Corridor, the transcontinental trade route linking Central Asia to Europe through the South Caucasus. It is no accident that this sits at the top of the agenda.

As global supply chains continue to shift away from Russian-controlled routes, Georgia’s geographic position has quietly become one of its most valuable assets, and Washington - increasingly focused on reducing Eurasian dependencies - is paying attention.

Accountability and political signalling 

The reset did not materialise from nowhere. It was a phone call in late March between Kobakhidze and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the highest-level contact between the two countries in years, that cracked open the door. What followed has been a deliberate sequence of gestures from Tbilisi designed to demonstrate seriousness.

Most notably, Georgia’s Prosecutor General announced the arrest of five current and former security officers over violence against protesters and journalist Guram Rogava during the 2024 demonstrations. Remarkably, it was the first time any law enforcement officer had faced criminal accountability for violence against demonstrators since those turbulent protests. Opposition figures were sceptical about the timing, and understandably so.

The same week, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili addressed the first Summit of Speakers of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean and partner countries, making the case for regional parliamentary diplomacy as a stabilising force in fractured times. His speech placed the Middle Corridor front and centre, arguing that strategic transit routes are reshaping trade between Europe and Asia while reducing the vulnerability of global supply chains.

Energy security and South Caucasus regional cooperation also featured prominently. Both the venue and the message appeared carefully chosen: Georgia presenting itself as a constructive, forward-looking regional actor on an international stage.

The contrast with Georgia’s posture towards the EU remains stark. While Tbilisi has repeatedly accused Brussels of blackmail and interference, its tone towards Washington has remained warm and ideologically accommodating, framing the reset as a partnership between like-minded, sovereignty-first governments. Two Western partners, two entirely different approaches.

NATO ties remain active 

In a parallel but connected development, Foreign Minister Bochorishvili met NATO’s newly appointed Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, Ambassador Kevin Hamilton. Defence cooperation, the regional security environment and Georgia’s occupied territories were all on the agenda.

Hamilton reaffirmed the Alliance’s unwavering support for Georgia’s territorial integrity. Whatever tensions exist at the political level, Georgia’s practical engagement with NATO structures has never fully stopped.

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Taken together, this week’s diplomatic activity paints a picture of a government working every available front simultaneously: courting Washington with connectivity arguments and belated accountability measures; promoting Georgia’s regional relevance from a Mediterranean parliamentary stage; and maintaining NATO dialogue through institutional channels.

The strategy is coherent, if precarious. Georgia is betting that geopolitical utility can compensate for the democratic credibility it has spent the past two years eroding. Whether that gamble pays off will define not only its foreign policy, but also its broader future direction.

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