ISTANBUL

Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party on Thursday nominated its chairman Irakli Kobakhidze for role of the prime minister.

“I express my gratitude to the founder and honorary chair of the party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, for appointing me to the position of prime minister and for placing confidence in me,” Kobakhidze told the party’s congress in Tbilisi.

The congress, meanwhile, elected Irakli Garibashvili as the party’s new chairman, who announced his resignation as the prime minister earlier this week.

“Today I am proud to have contributed to the progress of our country. For the support I have always felt, I would like to thank each of you, the party leadership, each member, ministers, ministries, civil servants, and of course, special thanks goes to our people, whose trust and support is the main incentive for our daily activities,” Garibashvili said.​​​​​​​