NATO Secretary General: Georgia is moving closer to the Alliance
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili to NATO Headquarters on Wednesday (8 June 2016) for talks on the Alliance’s partnership with Georgia and ongoing reform efforts. During a joint press conference with President Margvelashvili, Mr. Stoltenberg praised Georgia for its contributions to Euro-Atlantic security and its strong commitment to NATO.
The Secretary General thanked Georgia for its role in Allied operations, noting that “Georgian troops have been standing shoulder to shoulder with NATO for many years.” He highlighted that Georgia is the third-largest contributor to NATO’s Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan, and welcomed Georgia’s impressive defence reforms.
Mr. Stoltenberg also underscored NATO’s commitment to Georgia’s security: “Over the past two years, we have put in place a Substantial NATO-Georgia package of support to strengthen Georgia’s defence capabilities and implementation is well on track.” He noted that the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre in Tbilisi is up and running and joint exercises have started. He added that 30 NATO experts are supporting Georgia’s ongoing defence reforms. “At the Warsaw Summit next month, we will further strengthen our package of support for Georgia,” said Mr. Stoltenberg.
During their talks, the Secretary General and President Margvelashvili discussed Georgia’s progress in consolidating its democratic institutions, and ongoing efforts to strengthen rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. Mr. Stoltenberg welcomed Georgia’s continuing reform efforts and highlighted that NATO will continue to support Georgia in moving closer to the Alliance.