Deputy Defense Minister Comments on Arms Spending

Increase in Georgia?s defense spending aims at getting closer to the NATO standards, Georgian Deputy Defense Minister Mamuka Kudava told Civil Georgia on June 13.

Georgia increased its arms spending by 143% – up to USD 146 million – in 2005, which is the biggest increase worldwide, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in its latest yearbook, issued on June 12.

?There is nothing extraordinary in this increase. The information which was revealed by the SIPRI was provided by the [Georgian] Ministry of Defense,? Mamuka Kudava said.

The Deputy Defense Minister also said that the new leadership pays special attention to the defense sector of the country and ?this is a normal trend.?

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov expressed concern over Georgia?s military spending.

?Over the last year or two Georgia has obtained large amounts of arms from Eastern European countries,? Ivanov said on June 13, according to the Russian media reports.

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