NATO official: All parties to stand together for Georgia’s European advancement
By Tea Mariamidze
Friday, January 30
Deputy-Secretary General of NATO Alexander Vershbow paid an official two-day visit to Georgia and met with Georgia’s Parliament Chair Davit Usupashvili and the opposition on January 29.
The parties spoke about the implementation of the measures adopted at the NATO Wales Summit and the involvement of the NATO alliance, and discussed capacities and obligations imposed on Georgia in terms of implementation of the new package.
Usupashvili and Vershbow underscored the role of the parliament in this process.
“We have a very important guest here in Georgia. We spoke about security for Georgia. The decisions made at Wales Summit with regard to the NATO substantive package are being implemented, and Georgia and NATO have resumed more intensive cooperation in this new era. We have quite ambitious plans within the package and I am glad that we heard the full commitment of the NATO Secretary General from member states to fulfill their duties. All leading NATO states will be involved in these events in various aspects,” Usupashvili said.
Speaking about regional security, the parties attached their attention to the situation in occupied Abkhazia, relations between the separatist regime and Russia, including the Agreement on Alliance and Strategic Partnership.
The sides spoke about the events in Ukraine and the role of the democratic world in the regulation of this process.
“NATO representatives informed us about the evaluation of the situation in Ukraine. We noted that the Georgian people always were and are on the side of the Ukrainian people,” Usupashvili said.
According to A. Vershbow, this was a very useful meeting and very important as the Speaker summoned the opposition parties as well.
“All the measures to be implemented in Georgia – democratic reforms, judicial system reforms, reforms in the Interior Ministry and Prosecutor’s Office – shall unify all the political parties, as it is very important for the enhancement of democratic systems in Georgia and for the preparation of NATO membership,” the NATO official said.
Vershbow praised Georgia for its support for NATO peacekeeping missions and stated the implementation of the substantial NATO-Georgia package was going well.
Vershbow will hold several more meetings in Georgia, including a meeting with the Prime Minister.
