The country of Georgia is always lurking in the minds of state of Georgia officials when they head overseas for trade shows. It’s the principal reason they put that little USA after Georgia on all their signage.
But the same-name state and country aren’t letting a little quibble like that hamper their collaboration.
Georgia’s ambassador to the U.S., David Bakradze, made a stop in Georgia’s capital, Atlanta, during the week of June 15 to discuss how to deepen their ties. He met with Gov. Nathan Deal and with Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black, as well as with Invest Atlanta and Joe Jarrard, the adjutant general of the Georgia National Guard (of the state of Georgia, logically).
Already, Atlanta and the Georgian national capital, Tbilisi, have a long history of collaboration that has led to educational and tourism partnerships. In fact, that was one of the reasons for Mr. Bakradze’s visit, aside from getting outside the Beltway to further understand the a booming region of U.S. economy, according to the city’s Office of International Affairs:
The visit, coinciding with the 30th anniversary celebration of the Atlanta-Tbilisi sister city relationship, provided the Georgian delegation the opportunity to learn more about Atlanta’s economic profile and the programs and services offered by Invest Atlanta, as well as to discuss future economic cooperation between Atlanta and the Republic of Georgia.
Mr. Bakradze headed back to Washington in time to meet with another Georgian: former U.S. Rep. Tom Price, who is now Health and Human Services secretary and whose departure touched off a contentious runoff election in the state’s sixth congressional district.
The ambassador also spent time in Washington celebrating 25 years of diplomatic ties with the U.S. in late June.
But one question lingers for the homonymous state and country: Will the#GEOtoGEO hashtag the ambassador coined during his visit here gain traction in the age of digital diplomacy?
Perhaps it will be up to the Atlanta-Tbilisi Sister City Committee to make it last.