Georgian, Romanian defence ministers discuss ties at South-Eastern Europe Defence Ministerial

Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze on Thursday discussed strategic partnership and future cooperation with his Romanian counterpart Angel Tîlvăr in a meeting held as part of the South-Eastern Europe Defence Ministerial in Ankara.

The Ministry of Defence said Burchuladze thanked Tîlvăr for supporting Georgia's sovereignty and aspirations to join the European Union and NATO. 

The meeting also highlighted the importance of the recommendation issued by the European Commission earlier this month on granting the EU membership candidacy status to Georgia.

The two ministers discussed the cooperation agreement signed between the countries in 2022, as well as the Romanian side’s participation in initiatives of the NATO-Georgia Substantial Package.

The meeting also reviewed the participation of Romanian observers in the EU Monitoring Mission operating adjacent to the Russian-occupied regions of Georgia, and involvement of Georgian servicemembers in international defence exercises

Burchuladze was joining defence ministers of NATO member and partner countries for the Ministerial running in Turkey between Tuesday and Thursday and aimed at discussing regional security and cooperation.

The goal of the Ministerial was to consolidate cooperation between the countries of the region and promote their integration into Euro-Atlantic structures.

Georgia became a full member of the Ministerial in 2015 and hosted the event in 2017.