By Amelie Botbol, JNS
Ambassador Walid Abu Haya tells JNS that up to 60% of Israel’s oil imports transit through Georgia, as Jerusalem and Tbilisi deepen economic and strategic ties.
Fifty percent to 60% of Israel’s oil imports from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan transit through Georgia, underscoring the importance to Jerusalem of Tbilisi’s role in maintaining regional stability, Israeli Ambassador to Georgia Walid Abu Haya told JNS on Tuesday.
Abu Haya was born and raised in a Druze village in northern Israel and served in the IDF. He has held several diplomatic positions, including deputy chief of mission in Harare, Zimbabwe; deputy chief of mission in Prague; and deputy chief of Israel’s mission to the European Union and NATO in Brussels from 2018 to 2022. He began his tenure in Tbilisi last summer.
Drawing on his diplomatic experience, Abu Haya said there are different patterns of diplomatic ties between countries. Some have strong people-to-people ties but weaker relations between official government institutions, while others have the opposite. The optimal scenario, he said, is when both types of ties are strong, as is the case with Israel and Georgia.
Abu Haya described Israel-Georgia relations as rooted in 2,600 years of coexistence between Georgians and Jews.
“They lived in harmony and good neighborly relations, and this brought good relations between the people of Israel and the people of Georgia. The Jewish presence in the country over time represents a solid bridge between both nations,” he said, noting that the community has now been reduced to a few thousand at most, as many moved to Israel during the Soviet era.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Israel was the fourth country to officially recognize Georgia’s independence. Israel opened its embassy in Tbilisi in February 1993.
Abu Haya said that while he could not discuss defense and security ties in detail, the two countries maintain good, transparent cooperation, mutual respect for each other’s capabilities and information sharing on various issues.
Iran and regional security
Regarding Iranian attempts to influence segments of the Georgian population, Abu Haya said that, according to public sources, there may be such efforts among some Shi’ite Muslim citizens of Azeri origin, likely in the educational sphere.
“I hope there is nothing that could develop into a security threat to Israel, the Israeli embassy or Jewish interests in this country. Wherever we are, we face potential threats, and we work with the authorities on that,” he told JNS.
With Iran geographically close to Georgia, the two countries maintain diplomatic relations, which Israel does not interfere with.
While balancing Georgia’s relations with Iran and other Muslim countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel can sometimes be delicate, Abu Haya said he trusts the Georgian government to manage the situation.
Discussing tourism as an important part of bilateral relations, Abu Haya said Georgia is a country where Israelis feel welcome, adding that Georgian culture is quite close to Israeli culture.
“It’s an open, warm society that accepts foreigners and treats people well, with very beautiful landscapes, history and culture. It’s a good destination for any tourist, not just Israeli tourists,” he said.
With some destinations previously popular among Israelis, such as Turkey, now less frequently visited following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and ensuing wars, some of that tourism has been diverted to Georgia.
In 2025, more than 400,000 Israelis visited Georgia, just over a two-hour flight away, making Israel the country’s fourth-largest source of tourists after Russia, Turkey and Armenia, all of which share a border with Georgia.
Hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign currency flow from Israel to Georgia each year through tourism, real estate investment, agriculture, the medical sector and other areas. Bilateral trade totaled approximately $50 million to $60 million in 2024.
“Let’s not make a mistake and look at economic ties solely from the perspective of trade. It’s low, but if you add the full picture of tourism and investments, I would say there is a lot of economic activity between the two countries,” Abu Haya said.
Strategic crossroads
Georgia, he continued, sits at an important crossroads between Russia, Europe, East Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East and seeks to become a corridor connecting the regions.
“They are developing infrastructure and have begun work on the deepwater port in Anaklia, which could connect Central and East Asia to Europe,” he said.
Abu Haya said he also attaches great importance to people-to-people connections, seeking to strengthen them with a focus on Generation Z, which he said is less familiar with the history of the State of Israel and Georgia’s local Jewish community.
The ambassador said he focuses on Israel’s strengths, particularly in innovation, cybersecurity and high-tech, education, research and development, and artificial intelligence.
Georgians, he said, view Israel as a model to emulate. Both nations are small and located in turbulent regions, yet Israel has become a beacon for other nations.
“They want us to share best practices with them. They want to get there as well, and we are here to help them do that,” he said.
Culturally, Abu Haya said, joint activities include Israeli theater productions touring Georgia and Israeli films competing at Georgian film festivals.
“By the end of the year, I’m planning to have the Israeli Andalusian Orchestra of Ashdod come here to perform for Hanukkah and Christmas,” he said.
For many years, Abu Haya said, Israel has shared its expertise with Georgia through MASHAV, the Israeli Agency for International Development Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Over 2,000 Georgians in the past 30 years have been trained in Israel at different institutes in agriculture, early childhood education, security, health and medical issues, and we continue to do that. Every year, we have tens of Georgians go to seminars and return to their communities to pass on what they’ve learned in Israel,” he said.
Turning to the Jewish community currently living in Georgia, Abu Haya said some Jews returned after Georgia regained its independence, while others never left. Some Israelis, mainly of Georgian origin, have also returned to live in Georgia, while others without Georgian roots have moved there because they feel comfortable in the country.
Georgia, he said, is a good example of how people of different faiths and beliefs can live together in harmony and peace. An estimated 100,000 Israelis of Georgian origin remain deeply attached to their roots and tend to visit Georgia several times a year.
“Reminders of Jewish presence in this country exist all over. This is something Georgians and Jews are proud of,” he said.
