Georgian PM pledges to work to get country “much closer” to NATO, deepen partnership with Alliance
The PM highlighted the “friendly attitude towards Georgia” following the meeting of the NATO-Georgia Commission earlier today, noting it gave the Government “a reason for optimism that the partnership between Georgia and NATO will deepen even more”. Photo via Government Administration
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Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday pledged to continue working towards getting Georgia “much closer” to NATO and said it was “fundamentally” important to deepen the partnership with the Alliance.
In his comments to the media in Brussels, Kobakhidze noted his Government would do everything to “make maximum progress” on the NATO integration path and emphasised the integration process would be difficult amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
He stressed that despite the difficult situation, Georgia had to “look ahead” and be prepared for the full integration into the Alliance.
The PM highlighted the “friendly attitude towards Georgia” following the meeting of the NATO-Georgia Commission earlier today, noting it gave the Government “a reason for optimism that the partnership between Georgia and NATO will deepen even more”.
Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration and the NATO-Georgia relations agenda, as well as the steps taken towards the integration and concrete plans for future cooperation, were discussed on Wednesday by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General.
Georgia’s progress in various areas, including crisis management, cyber security, military engineering and secure communications, was welcomed on Wednesday by Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General, in his comments at the press briefing with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze at NATO Headquarters in Brussels.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday said NATO had played a “significant role” in enhancing the country’s defence capabilities and increasing its interoperability with the alliance.
Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Wednesday said Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze would participate in a meeting of the NATO-Georgia Commission, which he said was “one of the main mechanisms of NATO-Georgia bilateral cooperation”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday said “everything should be done” so that Georgia could “move to a new stage” on European integration - opening accession talks with the European Union by the end of the year.
Georgian Defence Minister Irakli Chikovani on Wednesday said the NATO-Georgia Commission meeting earlier during the day, as part of PM Irakli Kobakhidze’s visit to Brussels, had been “positive”.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said 2024 should “become the year of rapprochement” with the European Union and NATO, in comments of his 2023 report in the legislative body.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said his visit to Brussels this week had “made it possible to discuss all points” around the work for meeting the priorities outlined by the European Commission for opening accession talks with the country.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said a “fair and constructive” approach was helping develop relations between Georgia and the European Union, noting the decision of the European Council to grant the country the bloc’s membership candidate status last year had “positively” affected the deepening of the ties.
Sheraz Gasri, the French Ambassador to Georgia, on Friday said the meetings held in Brussels, as part of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s first foreign visit, were “very important”, expressing hope to deliver “very good news” to France on Georgia’s progress in implementing relevant reforms.
Relations between Georgia and the European Union were discussed on Tuesday in a meeting between the Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Pawel Herczynski, the European Union Ambassador to the country.