Nikoloz Vashakidze was appointed as the First Deputy Foreign Minister, replacing Giga Bokeria, who has become secretary of National Security Council.
  
Before the new appointment Vashakidze served as deputy defense minister. He held various posts in the Foreign Ministry since 1996 and was the first deputy foreign minister in 2007-2008. Vashakidze was deputy secretary of the National Security Council in 2000 and president of Georgian International Oil Corporation in 2004-2007.

In the capacity of first deputy foreign minister Giga Bokeria was Georgia’s chief negotiator in Geneva talks. He will be leading the Georgian delegation at the next, fourteenth round of Geneva talks on December 16. According to the Foreign Ministry no final decision, however, has yet been taken whether it will be Vashakidze or someone else who will replace Bokeria as chief negotiator in Geneva after the next round of talks.

Another post of deputy foreign minister became vacant after Alexander Nalbandov was nominated as the Georgian ambassador to Slovakia and Slovenia in the recent reshuffle of the diplomatic corps.