NATO Secretary General’s Special Rep. for South Caucasus and Central Asia Visits Georgia
Javier Colomina, NATO Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia, is visiting Georgia. On December 19, Colomina met with President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili. The NATO official also met with the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Garibashvili, the Minister of Defense of Georgia, Juansher Burchuladze, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ilia Darchiashvili and the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili. Earlier, on December 18, he met with the Georgian opposition.
According to the presidential administration of Georgia, during the meeting the parties touched upon Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration process, the EU candidacy, NATO-Georgia relations and the scheduled parliamentary elections in Georgia in 2024.
“[I had a] fruitful exchange with Javier Colomina, NATO Secretary General’s Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia. NATO-Georgia bilateral relations are positively developing,” Speaker Papuashvili tweeted, adding that “Georgia remains firm in its commitment towards NATO and EU membership. We hope that NATO support towards Georgia will become as tangible as possible.”
According to the Georgian MOD, the Defense Minister, and the NATO Special Representative discussed the security environment and challenges in Georgia and the region. Minister Burchuladze informed Colomina about reforms implemented by Georgia aimed at strengthening the country’s defense capabilities and interoperability with NATO.
“The meeting highlighted the critical importance of the successful implementation of the enhanced Substantial NATO-Georgia Package (SNGP) and the Alliance’s tailored support to Georgia in light of the current security challenges.” Minister Burchuladze thanked the NATO official for his support for Georgia’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and NATO integration.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the meeting on December 20, the NATO Special Representative and the Georgian FM discussed the priorities of the NATO-Georgia practical and political cooperation, as well as the current regional security environment.
According to Giorgi Baramidze from the opposition United National Movement, on December 18, Colomina met with the representatives of several opposition parties, and they had a very “useful” discussion about “how to help our country and our people take real steps to become a member of the EU and NATO.”
On 19 December, the NATO official also met with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. Discussions focused on the main directions of the NATO-Georgia partnership agenda and Georgia’s progress in Euro-Atlantic integration.
Colomina congratulated Garibashvili on the European Council’s decision to grant Georgia EU candidate status. The Prime Minister thanked Colomina for his support of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and emphasized that European and Euro-Atlantic integration is the main priority of Georgia’s foreign and security policy.
During the meeting, the parties discussed Georgia’s role and the importance of its contribution to ensuring global security, as well as security in the Black Sea region. The Prime Minister emphasized that Georgia has always been a reliable partner of NATO.
The meeting was attended by Alexander Vinnikov, Head of the NATO Liaison Office, Revaz Javelidze, Head of the Government Administration, and Viktor Dolidze, Georgia’s Ambassador to NATO.
Also Read:
- 24/05/2023 – NATO Special Rep. for South Caucasus and Central Asia Visits Georgia
- 22/05/2023 – Georgian Parliamentary Delegation Attends NATO PA Spring Session
- 28/09/2022 – Defense Minister Meets NATO Special Rep. for the Caucasus, Central Asia
This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
