NATO is fully committed to Georgia’s future membership
Tweet 
Share
NATO and Georgia officials have gathered in Brussels to discuss the country's progress of reforms and how the Alliance can assist Georgia as it moves to realise its European aspirations.
The parties discussed Georgia’s Annual National Program (ANP) - a document which reflects Georgia's short-to medium-term strategy that covers various issues ranging from military reforms to foreign and security policy and economic development, at the NATO-Georgian Commission (NGC) meeting held at the NATO headquarters on January 14.
Permanent representatives of the Alliance member states positively assessed the reforms Georgia had carried out within the ANP for 2014.
At the meeting Georgian State Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Davit Bakradze and Deputy Foreign Minister Davit Dondua met with NATO's Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow, who later wrote on his Twitter account: "NATO is fully committed to Georgia’s future membership. All tools are in place to move forward with Georgia’s aspirations.”
#NATO is fully committed to #Georgia’s future membership. All tools are in place to move forward with Georgia’s aspirations
— Alexander Vershbow (@NATOdsg) January 14, 2015
#NATO & aspiring member #Georgia have robust partnership w/ high degree of interoperability of forces thanks to mission in #Afghanistan
— Alexander Vershbow (@NATOdsg) January 14, 2015
Everyone at the meeting agreed Georgia had made a significant contribution to strengthening Euro-Atlantic security and emphasized Georgia's participation in the ISAF operations and in a new, NATO-led mission called Resolute Support.
The Alliance again reaffirmed its commitment to the decision adopted at the 2008 Bucharest Summit and underlined that the Alliance strongly supported Georgia's Euro-Atlantic aspirations, the press office of the Georgian Foreign Ministry said.
Moreover, the Alliance expressed its readiness to take an active part as Georgia moved to realise the substantial package offered by NATO at the Wales Summit last year.
The risks and threats coming from the so-called treaty signed between Georgia’s breakaway region Abkhazia and Russia also were discussed at the meeting.
"The Allies expressed their concern over the aggressive, illegitimate and unlawful policy the Russian Federation has been carrying out towards the neighboring countries and reaffirmed NATO's support for Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereignty,” the Ministry’s press office said.
The NGC was established in September 2008 to serve as a forum for political consultations and practical cooperation to help Georgia achieve its goal of NATO membership.
NATO and Georgia officials are set to gather in Brussels this week to discuss the country's progress of reforms and how the Alliance can assists Georgia as it moves to realise its European aspirations.
NATO-Georgia officials are gathering in Brussels today to discuss how Georgia will implement the Substantive Package, offered by the Alliance at last month’s NATO Summit in Wales.
Georgia is marking its place in history as the first non-member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) to join the group’s Energy Security Centre of Excellence (ENSEC COE) as a Contributing Partner Nation.
NATO may hold military exercises in Georgia and establish a military training centre in the country, see more Georgian participation in NATO exercises and possibly expand the local NATO liaison office - a top NATO official said.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has agreed in principle to offer "a substantive package” to Georgia to help it come closer to NATO but made no mention of membership.
A positive report of Georgia and the success of its recent local elections could play an important part in the country’s future relationship with NATO.
NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow will visit Georgia in three weeks and discuss Georgia's implementation of the support package offered by the Alliance at the last NATO Summit in September 2014.
NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow believes all tools are in place for Georgia to move forward with its desire to integrate into Euro-Atlantic structures.
Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibahsvili believes Georgia has fulfilled all obligations leading towards further integration with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and now it was time to patiently wait for next year’s NATO Summit in Warsaw, Poland.