Defence minister Burchuladze, NATO Sec-Gen Stoltenberg discuss alliance's regional involvement, Georgian reforms

Georgia has carried out ‘impressive reforms’ while enhancing its defence capabilities through the substantial NATO-Georgia package, Head of NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer stated yesterday following two-day meetings of the Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session (MCCS).

Georgian defence minister Juansher Burchuladze met with Head of NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer on Wednesday and discussed the military cooperation between Georgia and the alliance.

Georgia’s defence minister Juansher Burchuladze and his Ukrainian colleague Oleksii Reznikov are set to meet NATO counterparts on Thursday, during sessions involving the alliance’s ministers of defence in Brussels, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Tuesday.

Georgia will host the 2022 NATO-Georgia Exercise for the third time in March, with the defence manoeuvres set to be led by the Georgian Defence Forces and involve alliance and partner countries, the defence ministry announced on Tuesday.

The presence of the Russian occupation forces in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) was on the agenda of meetings involving NATO ministers of defence with their Georgian and Ukrainian counterparts in Brussels today, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in comments about the ministerial.

United States Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin sat down with Minister of Defence of Georgia Juansher Burchuladze in one of the few meetings the American official held at the NATO ministerial in Brussels on Thursday, with the discussion covering questions of strategic cooperation between the partnering countries.

Long-term plans for the development of Georgian Defence Forces (GDF), strengthening their capabilities, issues of cybersecurity and NATO cooperation were some of the topics discussed by Minister Juansher Burchuladze and the Parliamentary Confidence Group earlier today.

Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze will take part in an extraordinary meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence on Wednesday in Brussels, the press office of the alliance announced on Monday.

Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze will take part in an extraordinary meeting of NATO defence ministers on Wednesday, the alliance's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed earlier today.

Georgia needs to strengthen its self-defence capacity while NATO should consider enhancing its cooperation with the country amid “elevated risks”, Viktor Dolidze, the Head of the Georgian Mission to NATO, said on Tuesday.

Georgia is a democratic state based on the rule of law and bound by a “valuable unity” with its partners and NATO, which has been “repeatedly demonstrated” through democratic reforms and contribution to global security, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said on Thursday in an event for the 2022 NATO-Georgia Exercise.

The cooperation between armed services of the United States and Georgia, and the ongoing transformation of the Georgian Defence Forces were discussed in a meeting between Major General Giorgi Matiashvili, the Chief of the GDF, and Major General Joseph Gerrard, the Deputy Commanding General of US Army Europe and Africa on Thursday.

In light of the Russian occupation of Georgian regions and its ongoing invasion of Ukraine it is “very important” to increase Georgia's defence capabilities, Juansher Burchuladze, the Georgian Defence Minister, said on Thursday in an interview with Imedi TV channel.

The recall of the Ukrainian Ambassador from Georgia in March was a “mistake” and the two states should put the past “upsets” behind them, Juansher Burchuladze, the Georgian Defence Minister, said on Monday. 

The joint Delegation of Canada to NATO on Friday said the country “strongly supported” Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration, including eventual membership in NATO.

Defence ministers of Ukraine, Georgia, Finland and Sweden, along with representatives of the European Union, will take part in a meeting of NATO defence officials next month.

The Defence Ministry is working to ensure Georgia receives “enhanced practical support” at the upcoming NATO Summit in Madrid, Minister Juansher Burchuladze said on Thursday.

Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze noted “great challenges” for non-NATO member states in Europe on the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while also detailing measures for increasing Georgian Defence Forces capabilities and the Ministry’s work for improving the livelihoods of servicemembers, in a Parliament address on Thursday.

Georgia’s Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze on Tuesday raised the topic of the challenging security environment in the Black Sea region in his address to the virtual-format Atlantic-Black Sea Security Forum involving officials from Europe and the United States.

Brigadier General Edward Vaughan of the United States European Command has commended the steps taken as part of the Georgia Defence and Deterrence Enhancement Initiative, an agreement signed last year, during his visit to the country on Friday for an interim assessment of the mechanism that aims to modernise and develop the Georgian Defence Forces with US support.

Georgian-Romanian defence cooperation and future relations were discussed on Tuesday in a meeting between the Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze and General Daniel Petrescu, the Romanian Chief of Defence, the Georgian Defence Ministry said.

The security environment and contemporary challenges in the Black Sea region and the Ukraine conflict were in focus of a meeting involving Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze and his Turkish and Azerbaijani colleagues, Hulusi Akar and Colonel General Zakir Hasanov, the Georgian Defence Ministry said on Thursday.