Second Meeting of the Joint Committee on the China-Georgia Free Trade Agreement and First Round of Negotiations for Agreement Upgrades Held in Beijing

From July 3 to 4, the second meeting of the Joint Committee on the China-Georgia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the first round of negotiations for upgrading the agreement were held in Beijing. The meeting was co-chaired by Vice Minister of Commerce, Yan Dong, and Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Aviladze. Representatives from the Central Propaganda Department, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the People's Bank of China, the General Administration of Customs, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Intellectual Property Administration, and relevant trade associations also participated.

Yan Dong noted that under the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, the China-Georgia FTA has been successfully implemented, promoting robust bilateral trade growth, smooth progress in investment and economic-technical cooperation, and has become a vivid example of high-quality cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative. The upgrade of the agreement is a comprehensive optimization and expansion of the existing deal. Against the backdrop of some countries adopting unilateralism and protectionism, this demonstrates the two countries' firm resolve and practical actions in promoting the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, as well as their commitment to genuine multilateralism. The upgraded agreement will inject new momentum into the deepening of bilateral economic and trade relations. Both sides hope to use the implementation and upgrading of the agreement as an opportunity to fully explore trade potential, enhance connectivity, and foster greater development in China-Georgia economic and trade cooperation.

Aviladze expressed that Georgia has always supported multilateralism and free trade. The implementation and upgrade of the China-Georgia FTA are of great significance for Georgia. The country is eager to use this opportunity to expand exports of high-quality products such as wine, food, and agricultural products to China, deepen cooperation in areas such as e-commerce, pharmaceutical supply chains, customs procedures, and trade facilitation, and welcome more Chinese enterprises to invest in and develop business in Georgia.

At the end of the meeting, both sides jointly signed the meeting minutes.

The China-Georgia Free Trade Agreement officially came into effect on January 1, 2018. This upgrade includes four new chapters covering sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical trade barriers, investment, and e-commerce.