Georgia “strategically ready” for NATO membership as “reliable ally” - Vice Speaker

Archil Talakvadze, the Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, on Monday said Georgia was “strategically ready” for NATO membership and described the country as the alliance’s “reliable partner”, ahead of the bloc’s Summit on Tuesday. 

• Parliament Speaker: political objective of NATO accession “bringing Georgians together”

In his press remarks, the Parliamentary official said Tbilisi was expecting “strong and clear” messages from the alliance considering the country’s “democratic development and defence reforms”. 

Pointing to Georgia’s hosting of large-scale NATO exercises over the past years, and its contribution to alliance-led peacekeeping missions, Talakvadze stressed his country had “proven it is a reliable partner and deserves to be a member of the [bloc’s] family”. 

Responding to claims by several domestic opposition groups about an alleged lack of preparations by the Government for the Summit, the official accused them of engaging in a “harmful, anti-state” campaign, before advising the opponents to “look into” the alliance’s reports and assessments about the country.