Georgian foreign minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Wednesday said NATO partners had “very clearly” stated their support for a progressive integration of Georgia into the alliance, adding the process would “definitely” continue.
In his remarks over the two-day ministerial in Bucharest, Darchiashvili noted the country’s partners had emphasised the decisions made at the NATO summit in Madrid earlier this year with the assistance document tailored to the needs of Georgia.
It is quite symbolic that we are in Bucharest, the capital of Romania [where the 2008 NATO summit pledged Georgia would become a member]. We heard very strong, supportive messages from our partners today. On the one hand, it was about the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia, where once again our partners unanimously and unequivocally emphasised that Georgia has partners who firmly support the territorial integrity of the country”, the top Georgian diplomat said.
“Today in Bucharest, the partners very clearly stated that they support the progressive integration of Georgia into the alliance and this process will definitely continue. At the meeting, it was emphasised that Georgia is a loyal partner of NATO in the region, and we are sure that our presence in similar formats will strengthen and bring a new impetus towards NATO integration”, Darchiashvili concluded.
Glad to be here in #Bucharest for NATO #ForMin, where unwavering support to ????????, as well as to the country's aspiration efforts has been once again boldly demonstrated. Special importance of ???????? to the Alliance & NATO's commitment to the Open Door Policy have also been highlighted. pic.twitter.com/lTKYlNg9eV
— Ilia Darchiashvili (@iliadarch) November 30, 2022
In a joint statement issued on Tuesday, NATO foreign ministers reaffirmed their 2008 Bucharest summit pledge, and "all subsequent" decisions, that Georgia and Ukraine would become members.
The statement said the FMs “firmly” stood behind their commitment to the alliance’s open door policy and welcomed meetings with counterparts from partner states of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Moldova.