Botchotishvili Participates in 62nd Munich Security Conference
By Liza Mchedlidze
Monday, February 16, 2026
Georgian Dream Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili attended the 62nd Munich Security Conference (MSC), an international forum this year focused on U.S.-European security ties, Greenland's future, and Russia's war in Ukraine.
According to the Georgian Foreign Ministry, Botchorishvili met with her counterparts and took part in several panel discussions. Her visit followed last year's absence, when no Georgian Dream officials were invited to the 61st MSC. Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze confirmed this year that Georgia received an invitation, though he did not attend. Opposition figure and former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, now in exile, also attended the conference.
Botchorishvili participated in the panel Defining Eurasia's Strategic Order: The Middle Corridor as a European Security Agenda for Stability, Peace, Security and Connectivity, alongside Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
"The Minister focused on Georgia's role in the development of the Middle Corridor and underscored the importance of strengthening connectivity. She highlighted a strategic vision that conceives the Middle Corridor not merely as a transportation route, but as a secure, rapid, and efficient economic bridge," the Foreign Ministry said. The MFA added that Georgia's geographic location and open economic policy position the country as a central hub linking Europe and Asia.
Botchorishvili also participated in a roundtable on EU enlargement with European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos and foreign ministers from EU member states and candidate countries. "The discussion focused on the ongoing enlargement process of the European Union, the challenges currently facing it, and future steps," the MFA reported.
At the MSC, Botchorishvili met with Ignazio Cassis, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Head of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. The MFA said the meeting focused on the security situation in the region, including Georgia's occupied territories, and Switzerland's role as a mediator in Georgia-Russia relations. Botchorishvili also invited Cassis to visit Georgia.
On February 14, she met OSCE Secretary General Feridun Sinirlioglu to discuss the occupied regions, the Geneva International Discussions format, and the OSCE's engagement in conflict resolution.
During the conference, Botchorishvili met with Argentinian Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno and Uzbekistan's Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov. The MFA said both meetings reviewed bilateral and multilateral cooperation, trade, and the importance of high-level visits.
