Tbilisi hosts NATO’s Strategic Military Partner Conference

Chiefs of Defence of NATO member countries and its partner nations are gathering today in Tbilisi, Georgia to share their perspectives on strategic issues of common interest.

The Georgian capital is hosting this year’s annual Strategic Military Partner Conference (SMPC); a two-day event which aims to facilitate the exchange of ideas regarding transformation throughout the trans-Atlantic community.

"[This conference] is an important military forum where transformation issues and future membership of NATO partner countries are discussed,” said Georgia’s Ministry of Defence in a statement.

The conference consists of two major parts: Chiefs of Defence (CHODs) Day and Workshops.

The CHODs Day:

Day one of the conference promotes strategic-level discussion through presentations. The following Q&A sessions will enable national perspectives to dovetail from the presentations.

"Since the SMEs [Subject Matter Experts] will be present, it is the hope of SMPC's organisers that presentations, combined with substantive Q&A sessions, will create common understanding and lay the foundation for the following workshops at the SME level,” stated NATO on its website.

The Syndicate Discussions:

The CHOD's plenary session will be followed by syndicate sessions. These breakout meetings will allow CHODs and SMEs from NATO and partner nations and Allied Command Transformation (ACT) to examine issues in greater detail.

The event will continue until June 10.

Georgia is an aspirant country for NATO membership. It actively contributes to NATO-led operations and cooperates with allies and other partner countries in many other areas.