WASHINGTON -- With the raising of the flag Thursday over the new U.S. embassy in the former Soviet state of Georgia, the administration now has diplomatic representation in the capitals of every Commonwealth nation, a State Department spokeswoman said.
The embassy charge d'affaires Carey Cavanaugh raised the stars and stripes during a ceremony at the embassy in Tbilisi, State Department spokeswoman Margaret Tutwiler said.
The embassy is housed in the Metekhi Palace hotel.
'The establishment of a U.S. embassy in Tbilisi is an historic event for both nations,' she said. 'It is a key step in the continuing development of strong ties between Georgia and the United States.'
Former Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze, now the chairman of the Georgian State Council, and other officials attended the ceremony, Tutwiler said.
Additionally, she said, the United States will now begin airlifting 150,000 pounds of medical supplies to Tbilisi. The humanitarian assistance, which will be flown out of Ankara, Turkey, is destined for the largest women's and children's hospital in Georgia, she said.
American doctors and nurses will travel with the aid flights, she said.
Previous plans to airlift the supplies were put on hold because the administration had information that the runways in Tbilisi had been mined, Tutwiler said. As a result, Georgia was the only Commonwealth state to not receive Operation Provide Hope assistance.
'We're very glad to open our embassy in Tblisi and at the same time to be able to take humanitarian assistance to the people of Georgia,' Tutwiler said.
