Article is translated by Adrian Bader
Kimberly Lowe, a Trump supporter, known in Georgia for her connections with Georgian Dream arrived in the Tbilisi airport the night before. She was met there by members of the Anti-Maidan group, one often associated with Kremlin narratives. Among the meeting was also an individual from the propagandist television channel POSTV.
“Everyone [in Georgia] wants a good relationship with the United States and the Western world,” said an American in the airport who was surrounded by people spreading the anti-Western rhetoric.
Kimberly announced her visit to Georgia several weeks ago. On her Facebook page, the Trump supporter wrote:
“I look forward to our meeting in Tbilisi this week to conduct an initial introductory meeting with representatives of the Georgian church and discuss current results and necessary joint preparations in place for the launch of the annual peace forum in Georgia and other regional peace initiatives.”
Posts Lowe shared on social media suggest her visit is to attend some world peace summit. To prepare for the event, the Republican party representative plans to meet with members of the Georgian government, senior members of the Patriarchate, and anti-Maidan participants.
There is, however, virtually no concrete information about the summit. In Georgian media, the forum is mentioned in the context of Kimberly Lowe’s participation. According to an article written by Georgia Today, the forum is organized by Beso Shengelia, who regards himself as an inventor. Although there is no confirmation of his inventions, he claims he is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
In an interview with Commersant, Beso Shengelia revealed that he had contacted Kimberly Lowe, a “member of Trump’s political team and the head of his election campaign”. Lowe supposedly agreed to participate in the world peace forum set to take place in the near future. According to Shengelia, Lowe also said the recently elected US president wants to come to Georgia and take part in the event as well.
On August 15th Beso Shengelia published a photo in the newspaper Saqartvelos Respublika (Republic of Georgia) of Kimberly Lowe and Donald Trump on the front page. The caption claimed that main White House staff along with other government leaders would visit the World Peace Forum.
However, no statements or even hints that Trump will come to Georgia in the near future have been made. Further, the new United States administration still has not contacted any members of Georgian Dream or stated their reaction to the latest events in Tbilisi.
Interestingly, onboard Kimberly’s flight to Georgia were Tamar Chergoleishvili and Giga Bokeria, leaders of the opposition party Federalists (Bokeria is the former secretary of the security council). Chergoleishvili, the founder of Tabula, posted a selfie with Lowe on Facebook and explained what they chatted about:
“We explained to her that the [Ivanishvili] regime is not in any way conservative. For many years they were the group of Socialist progress (Party of European Socialists) until they were thrown out for misconduct. We told her that the regime is a gang of hypocrites and stooges of Putin who use zealous conservatives like Kimberly for their own interests. We explained that the regime doesn’t protect a person’s freedom or presumed innocence and imprisons people without trial. We told her that the regime is manipulating her and has tarnished her reputation. We even exchanged phone numbers.”
Later Tamar Chergoleishvili received a message from Lowe that she was happy. “She didn’t understand what they were doing for her. But she likes the attention,” the Federalists leader said.
The comment was likely in response to the pompous meeting in the airport where the American was met by portraits, bouquets of flowers, endless selfies, and draped in a Georgian flag. Later they arranged a traditional Georgian feast for Lowe, and she was made a special guest and main speaker for the conference of the Society of Women Leaders, a group founded by one of the Georgian Dream propagandists, Lali Moroshkina.
Interview with Pro-government Media
In Georgia, the name Kimberly Lowe became popular last December after an interview with her aired on the Public Broadcaster and Imedi, a government-run television channel. Both channels suggested that Lowe was being considered as a possible candidate for a Trump administration US representative in the European Union.
On both Imedi and First Channel, Kimberly Lowe made comments in support of Georgian Dream. In the interview, she said that she considers some of Wahington’s actions in relation to Tbilisi unfair and expressed her intention to better Georgian-American relations and support Georgia’s admission to the EU.
“We’re thinking of you, we are worried about what’s happening, and we truly believe that with strong American diplomacy, Georgia can attain peace… I agree that the United States took some action that was very unfair for our relations with Georgia, including the Megobari Act which was suspended,” said Lowe speaking with First Channel.
The interview aired amid pro-EU protests in Georgia and sanctions by the US and EU against Georgian politicians. Several of Kimberly’s statements clearly reiterated Georgian Dream narratives:
- “The current prime minister wants to continue to work on joining the European Union, and we want to help with this, I agree that certain US actions were unfair for our relations with Georgia,”
- “After the Trump administration arrives, we’ll see huge global change because President Trump and his administration want peace in the world. We are going to help achieve this peace between Georgia, the United States, and EU members,”
- “Georgia has worked much on their economy in all aspects in order to join the European Union. But it still has the right to preserve its cultural identity, this is very important,”
- “Now on Georgia’s agenda is the issue of me becoming a special representative for the United States in the EU. In this regard, I can help Georgia join the EU and resume negotiations in numerous spheres,”
- “As I understand it, the current administration didn’t want to end negotiations with the EU, but there were many issues that caused the relationship between the US and Georgia to worsen. With the new Trump administration, the situation will improve, and we are committed to help resume these negotiations,”
Amid this, many experts concluded that popularization of figures like Kimberly Lowe among the Georgian public was in the interest of the ruling party. For one, support from members of the Republican party adds to the narrative that the Trump administration will be favorable to the Ivanishvili regime. Further, Georgian Dream wanted to show that they have supporters in the West, despite almost all Western countries not recognizing the legitimacy of the last Georgian parliamentary elections.
The propaganda by Georgian Dream, however, fell apart faster than the authorities expected. A few days after Lowe’s interview, she clarified that part of it was translated incorrectly. According to her, the proposal of a special US representative in the EU was only recently put forward. She also stated that she didn’t say she was currently working for the Trump administration.
“On December 3rd, I, Kimberly Lowe was interviewed by a Georgian journalist. Excerpts from this video were spread to large parts of Georgia, Europe, Russia, Turkey, and Eastern countries. First, I want to say that America is with you, Georgia, and we are praying for you in this difficult time. Second, I want to say that there was an incorrect statement in the video that tied me, Kimberly Lowe, to the Iranian regime along with other lies.”
Some days later, the director of the Georgian news block Public Broadcaster, Giorgi Gvimradze, wrote on Facebook that he was responsible for the interview with Kimberly Lowe where the channel named her as a possible special representative for the US in the EU. Shortly after, however, Gvimradze deleted his post.
“I, and only I, am responsible for the publication of certain parts of the interview, no one else.”
Who is Kimberly Lowe?
Kimberly Lowe is in fact a member of the Republican party and intended to serve in the US Senate in 2024, however was among those who either refused to participate in primaries or were disqualified.
It’s also notable that in 2022 Lowe tried to serve in the House of Representatives, but was disqualified when she didn’t have the needed number of signatures and had errors in her application. In response, Kimberly stated that “party establishment” tried to block her.
There are no reports in American media that Lowe is expected to be appointed as a representative in the EU under the Trump administration or under any other title. The only source of this information was by the Trump supporter Lowe herself when speaking with Georgia’s Public Broadcaster.
It should be noted that currently Mark Gitenstein, a 78-year-old politician, diplomat, and specialist in international law, serves as permanent representative for the US in the European Union.
As for Kimberly Lowe, information from open sources doesn’t establish her qualifications or competence in any matters. Kimberly’s Facebook account has over 3,400 followers. Lowe is often photographed with various Republican politicians, though there is no information online about any close contact with the Trump administration. There is no evidence she has ever held any public office.
