US helps Georgia ensure border security

The United States (US) is helping Georgia to better protect its state borders and reduce illegal drug importation into the country.

The US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) assisted Georgia’s Border Police to develop K9 (sniffer dogs) centre near Tbilisi International Airport in the outskirt of the capital city.

Earlier today Georgia’s Interior Minister Giorgi Mgebrishvili and US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly officially launched construction of an administrative building at the new centre.

The officials believed this partnership between the relevant agencies of the two countries would help Georgia ensure its border security and meet international standards.

"The DTRA has started to actively participate in developing and modernising Georgia’s land borders,” Mgebrishvili said.

"This will greatly contribute to ensuring security at our state borders, which is a top priority of the Georgian Government in the process of its Euro-Atlantic integration.”

The Minister noted a new phase of the project would soon begin, in which the US will help Georgia develop infrastructure at the K9 centre. This will include installing cages, monitoring systems and proper technical equipment for the US-trained detection dogs.

"The Border Police of the Interior Ministry will also be given vehicles and other technical equipment,” Mgebrishvili said.

Ambassador Kelly assessed the projects as "just another example of the tremendous investment” that the US had made in support Georgia’s sovereignty and "ensuring its success as a stable, prosperous democracy”.

"We, of course, believe very much in Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations and I think this is just one more part of our support for Georgia to attain [its] aspirations,” Kelly said.