German Defense Minister Visits Georgia
German and Georgian Defense Ministers, October 5, 2017. Photo: mod.gov.ge
German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, who is paying an official visit to Georgia, met with his Georgian counterpart Levan Izoria today and discussed the two countries’ defense cooperation, including the joint participation of Georgian and German troops in the Afghanistan mission.
Speaking at the press briefing on October 5, Levan Izoria said Georgia “enjoys very important strategic partnership” with Berlin, underlining that “Germany has done a lot for the democratic development of Georgia during the last 25 years.
Izoria also said Georgia was ready to continue participation, together with the German troops, in the operations in Mazar-i-Sharif region in northern Afghanistan. The two also discussed the Georgia Defense Readiness Program (GDRP) – a U.S. defense support initiative that will be launched in 2018.
As part of her one-day visit, Ursula von der Leyen also visited the Defense Institution Building School, an initiative of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package established with German support, and met Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili.
