We are truly sad that Dennis Keefe is leaving the Tbilisi Embassy after three successful and high profile years. We have admired his openess, honesty and tact. Everyone at NKTA was impressed when he visted us in Newport. We wish him well in his new post.

Sonia Fisher, Chair of NKTA

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Georgian Embassy Report

June 2010

Leaving Tbilisi after 3 years is not easy. First because Georgia is such an interesting place to work, and second because these three years have seen so many events, good and bad. But we will be leaving with the memory of many friends, many wonderful places and superb hospitality.

When I first arrived in Georgia, my tasks here were clear: to help Georgia develop its democracy, integrate into the Euro-Atlantic world and resolve the conflicts peacefully.

These are still what I am working on as I prepare to leave, though the record on each one is complicated:

Georgia has survived difficult political crises and three elections. There have been protests, the
November 2007 crackdown and many other disputed events. But it is important that the most recent elections were an improvement, that key political players have accepted the results, and that there is now a better atmosphere as we look forward to the next two years. I hope there is now a chance to improve the electoral system further, find room for opposition parties to develop, deal with the problems affecting the media (transparency, balance, professionalism) and continue judicial reform so that Georgian politics becomes more normal.

There has been much progress with the EU - both because of the role the EU played during the August 2008 War and after, eg through financial aid and the deployment of the EU Monitoring Mission, and because Georgia has continued the hard work of modernising and europeanising its administration and legislation in ways that genuinely bring the country closer to Europe. There is plenty of scope for this to continue - as there is for continuing cooperation with NATO in the light of NATO's decisions about Georgia's future place in EuroAtlantic security.

Georgia's decision to deploy troops in Afghanistan, as it did in Iraq, is an important signal.
Peaceful resolution of the conflicts has been made more difficult by the August 2008 War. Georgia has had to make difficult reassessments of the position and its policies. The new Engagement strategy is an important step, and the UK and others in the International Community are working closely with Georgia to create an Action Plan of projects that should make a difference to the lives of people on the ground and to the prospects for the future.
So I am leaving much for my successor to do as I move to Moscow.

But Kate and I will never forget Georgia, and wish all the people of this country well in the future. We are grateful to colleagues at the Embassy who have given us such inspiring support in good times and bad. We have made many friends, who have helped us to understand Georgia and enjoy the wonderful things it has to offer. We will be back.

Denis Keefe
HM Ambassador

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