US defence secretary, Georgian defence minister discuss strategic cooperation

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.

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

Hosted at the NATO headquarters during the alliance’s ministerial in Brussels on Thursday, the talk between Austin and Burchuladze stressed the importance of the recent memorandum of understanding on the Georgia Defence and Deterrence Enhancement (GDDE) Initiative.

Signed between the two sides in October during Austin’s official visit to Georgia, the GDDE is a continuation of Georgia Defence Readiness Programme, an earlier package providing a platform for defence-related cooperation between the country and its US partners.

• Georgian defence minister, NATO official discuss military cooperation between alliance, Georgia

The Georgian minister thanked Austin for America’s “strong support and position” regarding Georgia and Ukraine’s security, with the meeting coming on the backdrop of raised tensions in the Black Sea region.

Burchuladze and his Ukrainian colleague Oleksii Reznikov participated in meetings of NATO ministers of defence in Brussels today.