Meetings and Discussions

   

The Visit of the Former U.S. Ambassador to Georgia

On June 30, 2004 the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies hosted the former U.S. Ambassador to Georgia, Mr. Kenneth Yalowitz. Ambassador Yalowitz had visited Tbilisi to participate in a two-day conference organized by the Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC).  The conference focused on money laundering, white-collar crime and corruption in Georgia.

During his meeting with the Foundation fellows, Ambassador Yalowitz discussed his work in Georgia back in 1998-2001 and presented his thoughts about the processes that took place in Georgia over last years. In addition, he outlined the challenges that lie ahead. Mr. Yalowitz pointed out that there is a good feeling in the United States about Georgia, however, the new government should sustain these sentiments abroad as well as the enthusiasm within its people and should prove that the things are really going to improve in the country. While talking about the crackdown on corruption, Ambassador Yalowitz mentioned that there are some concerns in the USA that the measures taken in this direction are somewhat oppressive. In his effort to contribute to this area, Mr. Yalowitz joined TraCCC last year, which is studying and analyzing corruption in different areas in Georgia. 

At the end of the meeting, Mr. Yalowitz answered the questions from the audience. Mr. Tedo Japaridze, former Georgian Ambassador to the United States and former Head of National Security Council of Georgia also contributed to the discussion.

It should be noted that Ambassador Yalowitz is one of the founders of  Georgia Forum which aims at helping Georgia carry out economic reforms, protect human rights and foster Georgia on its way to democracy through launching public discussions over the challenges that Georgia faces.