On 1 November, Georgia officially became a fully-fledged member country of the Governing Council of the Community of Democracies (CoD), an intergovernmental organization dedicated to the principles of democracy, reported agenda.ge.

“As a leader in democratic transformation in the region, strengthened by the commitment of Georgian people to the values and standards of democracy, Georgia will add a valuable voice to the Community’s Governing Council. I am very pleased to welcome Georgia as a new member state and look forward to working closely together within the CoD to promote, protect, and advance democracy worldwide,” CoD Secretary General Thomas E. Garrett stated.

Georgia’s engagement with the Community of Democracies began with the adoption of the Warsaw Declaration at the Community’s founding meeting in 2000 and has continued over the years with Georgia’s participation as an observer at the Community’s 2002 ministerial conference and as a participant in all other ministerial conferences. CoD stated that Georgia’s membership will add to the diversity of the Governing Council, which includes member states from most regions of the world and at different stages of democracy.

The CoD is a global intergovernmental coalition committed to taking concerted action to advance and protect democratic freedoms, strengthen democratic institutions, and expand political participation. It was created in 2000 as a common initiative of former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Polish Foreign Minister Bronisław Geremek in Warsaw. 106 countries signed the Warsaw Declaration Toward a Community of Democracies which serves as the main document of the organization. The Community of Democracies gradually developed from a conference initiative into a global intergovernmental coalition of democratic states and a multi-stakeholder platform for dialogue and discussion. It provides Member States a forum where they can work together to learn from each other and identify global priorities for diplomatic action to advance and defend democracy, including through collective diplomatic action at the UN and in other multilateral arenas.