Which position did Salome Zourabichvili hold from 2006 to 2010?
Salome Zourabichvili Salome Zourabichvili ( , ; born 18 March 1952 ) is a French–Georgian politician and former diplomat who currently serves as the fifth President of Georgia , in office since December 2018 . She is the first woman to be elected as Georgias president , a position she will occupy for a term of six years . As a result of constitutional changes coming into effect in 2024 , Zourabichvili is expected to be Georgias last popularly elected president ; all future heads of state are to be elected indirectly by a parliamentary college of electors . Zourabichvili was born in Paris into a family of Georgian immigrants . She joined the French diplomatic service in the 1970s and went on to occupy a variety of senior diplomatic positions for three decades . From 2003 to 2004 , she served as the Ambassador of France to Georgia . In 2004 , by mutual agreement between France and Georgia , she accepted Georgian nationality and became the Foreign Minister of Georgia . During her tenure at the Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( MFA ) , she negotiated a treaty that led to the withdrawal of Russian forces from the undisputed parts of the Georgian mainland . She has also served at the UN Security Council’s Iran Sanctions Committee as the Coordinator of the Panel of Experts . After a falling out with Georgias then President Mikheil Saakashvili , in 2006 Zourabichvili founded The Way of Georgia political party , which she led until 2010 . Ultimately , she was elected to the Georgian Parliament in 2016 as an independent ; she vacated her parliamentary seat after being sworn in as President . During the 2018 Georgian presidential election , Zourabichvili ran as an independent candidate and was supported by the governing Georgian Dream party . She prevailed in a run-off vote against Grigol Vashadze . Early life and education . Zourabichvili was born in Paris into a family of Georgian political emigrants . Her father , Levan ( 1906–1975 ) , was an engineer and served as a chairman of the Georgian Diaspora in Paris . He was the grandson of Niko Nikoladze , a prominent Georgian social democrat from the late nineteenth century , scion of noble Nikoladze family and a member of meore dasi , a collection of Georgian liberal intelligentsia . Her mother , Zeinab Kedia ( 1921–2016 ) , was related by marriage to Noe Ramishvili , the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Georgia . Zourabichvili has one brother , Otar . She attended some of the most prestigious French schools , such as Institut dÉtudes Politiques de Paris ( Sciences Po ) , and began a masters program at Columbia University in New York in the academic year of 1972–1973 , taking courses with Zbigniew Brzezinski . Zourabichvili is a cousin of Hélène Carrère dEncausse , a distinguished Franco-Georgian historian who serves as the head of the Académie française . Career . Career in diplomacy . Zourabichvili abandoned her studies and joined the French foreign service in 1974 , becoming a career diplomat with postings to Rome , the United Nations , Brussels , Washington , etc . The first time Zourabichvili visited Georgia was in 1986 during a break from her job at the French Embassy in Washington . Salomé Zourabichvili was Head of the Division of International and Strategic Issues of National Defence General Secretariat of France in 2001–2003 . She was appointed the Ambassador of France to Georgia in 2003 . Minister of Foreign Affairs , 2004–2005 . President Mikhail Saakashvili of Georgia nominated her as Minister of Foreign Affairs in his new government . Zourabichvili became the first woman to be appointed to this post in Georgia on 18 March 2004 . Zourabichvili was the Coordinator of the Panel of Experts assisting the UN Security Council’s Iran Sanctions Committee . As foreign minister of Georgia , Zourabichvili was the main negotiator of the agreement for the withdrawal of Russian military bases from the territory of Georgia , which was signed with Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov on 19 May 2005 . During her tenure as Foreign Minister , the New Group of Friends of Georgia was created , bringing together Ukraine , Lithuania , Latvia , Estonia , Romania , Bulgaria , the Czech Republic and Poland to help Georgias aspirations towards NATO and foster European integration . Zourabichvili was sacked by Prime Minister Zurab Nogaideli late on 19 October 2005 after a series of disputes with members of Parliament . She had also been heavily criticized by a number of Georgian ambassadors . Shortly before her dismissal was announced , Zourabichvili resigned from the French foreign service , which had continued to pay her a salary while she was minister , and announced that she would remain in Georgia to go into politics . Political career . In November 2005 , Zourabichvili set up the organization Salomé Zourabichvili’s Movement . In January 2006 she announced the establishment of a new political party Georgias Way , criticizing the countrys de facto one-party system . Although Zourabichvili enjoyed some degree of reputation in Georgia she was long unable to establish herself in the political field . At the city council elections in Tbilisi on 5 October 2006 , only 2.77% of the constituency voted for her party . Six months before , an opinion poll conducted by the Georgian weekly Kviris Palitra suggested that she would garner 23.1% of the votes at presidential elections . Since October 2007 , her party was part of the United Opposition alliance which nominated Zourabichvili as a Prospective Prime Minister in case of their candidate Levan Gachechiladzes victory in the January 2008 presidential election . As part of a 2009 campaign of the Georgian opposition to force President Mikheil Saakashvili to resign , Zourabichvili led a protest march together with three other prominent opposition figures – Nino Burjanadze , David Gamkrelidze and Eka Beselia – in Tbilisi on 26 March 2009 . On 12 November 2010 , Zourabichvili announced her withdrawal from the leadership of Georgias Way . She was succeeded by Kakha Seturidze . After a two-year leave from politics , she publicly endorsed Georgian Dream ahead of the 2013 presidential elections . Shortly after , Georgias Central Election Commission refused to register her as a presidential candidate due to her dual Georgian-French citizenship . In the 8 October 2016 parliamentary elections Zourabichvili won a seat as an independent , representing the Mtatsminda district of Tbilisi . She became MP on 18 November . During her term as MP , She was Deputy chairwoman of parliamentary committee on Diaspora and Caucasus Issues . Presidency . In August 2018 , Zourabichvili announced that she would participate in Georgian presidential elections . While she was officially independent , her campaign was heavily supported by Georgian Dream . Her main opponent in the election , Grigol Vashadze , was backed by Mikheil Saakashvili . The pre-election campaign was marred by a highly polarized political environment . International observers assessed the elections as competitive and free , stressing that one side enjoyed an undue advantage and the negative character of the campaign on both sides undermined the process , while the misuse of administrative resources blurred the line between party and state . In the first round , final results showed Zourabichvili with just 38.7 percent of the vote , one percentage point ahead of Vashadze , forcing a run-off . Zourabichvili won the 2nd round of the 2018 Georgian presidential election , becoming President-elect . She was inaugurated as President of Georgia on 16 December 2018 , with the ceremony performed in Telavi . As President , Zourabichvili inherited a new Constitution that entered into force the day of her inauguration and which significantly removed several powers from the Presidency , concentrating them within Parliament and the Prime Ministers Office . However , this did not stop her from using her position to call for historically-important decisions , including a new investigation into the controversial death of Zviad Gamsakhurdia , the countrys first President , in 1993 . Residence and funding . Salomé Zourabichvili announced during the presidential campaign that if elected , she would not work from the Avlabari Presidential Palace opened in 2009 , with Mikheil Saakashvili in office . She met with the fourth President after elections in the Avlabari Palace , but her administration has been moved into the Orbeliani Palace on Atoneli street in Central Tbilisi . On December 18 , 2018 she visited the Atoneli residence for the first time . Media met her at the entrance , emphasising the fact that she walked to the office . Besides moving to the smaller residence , Zourabichvilis office faced a significant budgetary cutback . According to the 2019 budget , funding for the presidential administration is being reduced by just over ₾ 3.5 million . As a result , the vast majority of former employees were fired with only 60 of them remaining in administration . Changes have also led to abolishing the presidential fund which amounted ₾5 million and funded scholarships , educational programs and various other projects . This decision has been widely criticized with Giorgi Margvelashvili and Maka Chichua campaigning for it to remain . Political positions . Womens rights and equality . As the first popularly elected woman president of Georgia , Zourabichvili has advocated for womens rights and equality through social media and from political tribunes . She has organised a number of meetings and attended conferences aiming for the empowerment of women and young girls . On October 5th 2019 , she hosted a meeting of women leaders from Georgia , Belgium and France , later saying on Twitter : The role of women in our society is crucial and their contribution to our political , cultural , entrepreneurial and educational circles is key to our development . LGBTQ rights . Amid the controversy around the 2019 Tbilisi Pride Parade , Zourabichvili said : “I am everyone’s president , regardless of sexual orientation or religious affiliation . No human should be discriminated against . I must also emphasize that our country is dealing with enough controversies and doesn’t need any further provocation from any side of the LGBTQ debate . This comment was met with criticism by LGBTQ organizations across the country , as well as some members of the civil society . Tbilisi Pride co-founder Tamaz Sozashvili wrote : How can she consider peaceful citizens and aggressive fundamentalists as equal sides ? She made no response to the criticism . Monarchy . In course of the 2008 Georgian presidential election , Zourabichvili and many other opposition politicians voiced support for the establishment of a constitutional monarchy under the Bagrationi dynasty , which the Patriarch of Georgia , Ilia II , had advocated . Personal life . Salomé Zourabichvili was married to the Georgian journalist Janri Kashia ( 1939–2012 ) . She has two children , Kethevane and Teimuraz , from her first marriage to Iranian-American economist Nicolas Gorjestani . Zourabichvili is the cousin of French historian Hélène Carrère dEncausse . Besides Georgian and French , she is also fluent in English , and is conversational in German and Italian . Works . - Salomé Zourabichvili ( 2006 ) . Une femme pour deux pays . Grasset , - Salomé Zourabichvili ( 2007 ) . Fermer Yalta , Cahiers de Chaillot , Institut de sécurité de lUnion européenne - Salomé Zourabichvili ( 2008 ) . Les cicatrices des Nations : LEurope malade de ses frontières . Bourin , - Salomé Zourabichvili ( 2009 ) . La tragédie géorgienne . Grasset - Salomé Zourabichvili ( 2011 ) . lexigence démocratique . Bourin éditeu