NATO Summit has “confirmed Georgia on right track” - Vice Parliament Speaker

Archil Talakvadze, the Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, on Wednesday said the ongoing NATO Summit in Vilnius had “confirmed” the country was “on the right track” and would “definitely receive” an invitation for membership “in the future”. 

In comments on the Communiqué adopted at the Summit to confirm the Alliance’s 2008 Bucharest Summit stance that Georgia would become a member, Talakvadze said his country remained “one of the most reliable allies” for NATO. 

In his remarks about the notes on Ukraine in the Communiqué, the Parliamentary official stressed Tbilisi was expecting a “clearer plan” for the country at war with Russia, with “deadlines and a specific procedure”.

In the document, NATO said Ukraine no longer needed the Membership Action Plan for integration, but noted it would be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the alliance when “Allies agree and conditions are met”. 

Talakvadze also slammed a part of the domestic opposition that said Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili had not been invited to the Summit and alleged the Government’s “wrong policies and statement” over the Russia-Ukraine conflict meant Georgia would have to take a “longer path” to the bloc’s membership compared to Kyiv.

The radical wing of the opposition is trying to pit Georgia and Ukraine against one another in the context of NATO”, Talakvadze said, adding Ukraine “deserves more attention” both from the bloc and the European Union due to the ongoing war.

He stressed the international community had “moral obligations” before Ukraine, and added the Georgian opposition’s “harmful statements” meant it was “fighting against the friendship” between the two countries.