(Itar-Tass) - Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Nogaideli met US Vice President Richard Cheney here on Tuesday to discuss bilateral relations between Georgia and Russia, settlement of frozen conflicts and issues related to energy security, Georgian diplomats told journalists. Cheney's office representatives have withheld comment.
Nogaideli earlier held talks with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, US President's National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, United States Trade Representative Susan Schwab, as well as members of the American Congress, reports Trend.
In the words of Georgian officials, during the Nogaideli-Cheney talks the sides discussed the current tense relations between Georgia and Russia, settlement of the Abkhazian and South Ossetian conflicts, as well as energy security.
In Washington Nogaideli called for normalisation of relations between Moscow and Tbilisi that have quickly aggravated after the Georgian authorities arrested a group of Russian officers in September this year.
The most important issue in bilateral relations with Russia for us today is the settlement of territorial conflicts, the Georgian government head told reporters.
We think that instead of blaming each other we should advance along the path of the peace plan implementation in the region and we discussed this matter with Secretary of State Rice, Nogaideli pointed out.
US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Matthew Bryza confirmed to journalists that one of the issues discussed at the talks Nogaideli held in Washington was ensuring natural gas supply to Georgia in the winter period that has begun.
At present Georgia is in talks with Azerbaijan, Turkey and Iran on gas supplies to the republic. The United States is against long-term strategic partnership between Tbilisi and Teheran in the natural gas sphere, however, does not rule out possible supplies of Iranian gas to Georgia in the event of force majeure as it happened in late January due to an explosion on a gas pipeline in North Ossetia.