Konstantine "Kote" Gabashvili () (born September 26, 1948) is a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

politician and diplomat. An Orientalist by training, he has been in government service since 1989. He was a member of the

Parliament of Georgia The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members; of these, 120 are proporti ...

in 1992 and again from 2004 to 2008. He has also served as Minister of Education (1992—1993),

Mayor of Tbilisi The Mayor of Tbilisi is an elected politician in Tbilisi. Before 2005 the mayors used to be appointed by the central government. In 2006 first mayoral elections were held in the history of the Republic of Georgia. The first elected mayor of Tbilis ...

(1993), Ambassador to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(1993—2004) and, simultaneously, to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

(2001—2004). Since August 2008, he has been Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to the

Italian Republic Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Republic of Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

and

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

.Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia. Dr. Konstantin Gabashvili, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to the Italian Republic, Republic of Malta and San Marino. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia. 2011-04-10.
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. Accessed: 2011-04-10.
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Biography

Konstantine Gabashvili was born on September 26, 1948 in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...

, the capital of then-

Soviet Georgia The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц� ...

. He graduated

Tbilisi State University Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University ( ka, ივანე ჯავახიშვილის სახელობის თბილისის სახელმწიფო უნივერსიტეტი ''Ivane Javaxishvi ...

with a degree in the Oriental studies in 1971. He tutored at his alma mater for several years until 1993. From 1989 to 1991 he worked for the Soviet government of Georgia as a Deputy Minister of Education. After the military coup, which overthrew President of Georgia

Zviad Gamsakhurdia Zviad Konstantines dze Gamsakhurdia ( ka, ზვიად გამსახურდია, tr; russian: Звиа́д Константи́нович Гамсаху́рдия, Zviad Konstantinovich Gamsakhurdiya; 31 March 1939 – 31 December 1 ...

in January 1992, Gabashvili joined the State Council of Georgia, an interim body, which relegated its rights to the newly elected parliament in October 1992. Gabashvili held a seat in this new legislature for only two months as he was moved to the post of Ministry of Education in December 1992. Georgia's Head of State

Eduard Shevardnadze Eduard Ambrosis dze Shevardnadze ( ka, ედუარდ ამბროსის ძე შევარდნაძე}, romanized: ; 25 January 1928 – 7 July 2014) was a Soviet and Georgian politician and diplomat who governed Georgia fo ...

made him Mayor of Tbilisi from February to October 1993. With the appointment as an ambassador to Germany later in 1993, Gabashvili's decade-long diplomatic career in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

began. In 2001, he simultaneously assumed the position of ambassador to

. After the November 2003

Rose Revolution The Rose Revolution or Revolution of Roses ( ka, ვარდების რევოლუცია, tr) was a nonviolent change of power that occurred in Georgia in November 2003. The event was brought about by widespread protests over the ...

, which toppled Eduard Shevardnadze and brought the young reformer

Mikheil Saakashvili Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist.

to power, Gabashvili resumed his political career in Georgia. Closely allied with Saakashvili, he was elected to the Parliament of Georgia on a United National Movement ticket in 2004. For four years of his tenure, Gabashvili chaired the parliamentary Committee for Foreign Relations. In August 2008, he was appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to Italy, Malta, and San Marino.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gabashvili, Konstantine 1948 births Diplomats from Tbilisi Ambassadors of Georgia (country) to Italy Ambassadors of Georgia (country) to Germany Ambassadors of Georgia (country) to Poland Ambassadors of Georgia (country) to Malta Ambassadors of Georgia (country) to San Marino Politicians from Tbilisi Members of the Parliament of Georgia Tbilisi State University alumni Academic staff of Tbilisi State University Orientalists from Georgia (country) Living people Mayors of Tbilisi