Civil Georgia
November 17, 2014
Georgian PM, NATO Chief Discuss Implementation of ‘Substantive Package’
Tbilisi: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met Georgia’s PM Irakli Garibashvili in Brussels on November 17 and discussed implementation of the “substantive package” of cooperation, which NATO offered to Georgia at its summit in Wales in September.
Speaking at a news conference after the meeting, Stoltenberg said that the plan is to start implementing various elements of the package by the NATO defense ministerial meeting in February, 2015. He also said that more details would also be available by that time.
Among those elements of the package are assisting defense capacity building in Georgia through, as Stoltenberg put it, “embedded trainers” and setting up of a joint training center in Georgia.
“Today we discussed how to translate these initiatives into actions,” Stoltenberg said.
“We are pleased that Georgia will also host NATO-Georgia Training Center. The Center will help the Georgian forces to maintain their ability to work with NATO and it will prepare Georgia and other partners for future contributions to NATO Response Force,” the NATO Secretary General said.
Asked about Russia’s concerns over planned NATO-Georgia Training Center, the NATO Secretary General responded: “We have decided to establish the training center, it’s going to be established, because Georgia is a sovereign nation and NATO is an organization that works together with a strong and committed partner, Georgia.”
“We are going to continue to impalement the package we agreed in Wales,” Stoltenberg.
PM Garibashvili said that the Georgian government is “committed to timely and effectively implement the substantial NATO-Georgia package.”
At the press conference, Georgian journalists asked twice the NATO Secretary General if he had any “concerns” or “doubts” about Georgia’s commitment to NATO integration. The question stems from a recent cabinet reshuffle, which involved firing of defense minister Irakli Alasania and resignations of foreign minister and state minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration.
“The Prime Minister was very strong, very clear” about Georgia’s NATO integration commitment, Jens Stoltenberg responded and added that he has “no reason to doubt” about it.
“I want to underline that the Prime Minister strongly underlined in talks that we had that Georgia is continuing on its path towards more Euro-Atlantic integration and I very much welcome this commitment; it is a strong commitment and it is an important commitment,” the NATO Secretary General said.
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