U.S. to Continue Training of Georgia Troops

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said after the meeting with U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on February 23 that the U.S. military instructors would continue training of Georgian troops.
 
“New military program will be launched in Georgia in April. This program, which will last for five years, implies training of Georgian militaries. So, we will have a new 5 thousand-strong brigade, President Saakashvili told reporters on February 23.

“However, we’d like to have one more brigade to be trained under the U.S. program, in order to have some 10,000 well-trained troops,” the Georgian President added. 

The U.S. has already trained four Georgian battalions in frames of Georgia Train-and-Equip program, which was launched in 2002. The fifth battalion is undergoing training at the moment. The U.S. allocated in GTEP $64 million.

Georgian President arrived in the United States on February 23. His meeting with U.S. President George Bush is scheduled for February 25.