ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Georgian government plans to open an honorary consulate in Erbil in the near future to strengthen cultural and economic ties between Tbilisi and Erbil, Georgia’s envoy in Iraq told Rudaw last week. Zaza Kandelaki, Ambassador of Georgia to Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, told Rudaw last Wednesday that it may take some time for the opening of an honorary consulate in Erbil because of procedures. “It is too difficult for me to speak about the time because it takes some procedure and we will see. We hope that it will be soon because it is in the interest of both sides,” he said. He elaborated that it will not be an official structure and will not issue visas. “It will be [for] cultural relationships [and] some economic issues between two sides,” added the envoy. “We consider Kurdistan as a region in Iraq. At the same time we have different regions in Georgia. So we think that establishing close relationships between Georgia regions and Kurdistan will be very useful for both sides,” noted the diplomat. Kandelaki met with Qubad Talabani, deputy prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), last year, announcing his country’s desire to open a consulate in Erbil. Talabani talked about his government’s efforts to “expand its relationship with regional partners and identify new opportunities for cooperation, especially in the fields of trade, tourism, higher education, and governance,” according to a statement by the KRG at the time.
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