The Messenger
February 18, 2022

Minister of Defense of Georgia Meets NATO Gen-Sec and US Secretary of Defense

[T]he strong political and practical support of NATO for both countries was discussed. Georgian Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze has held meetings with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Military Committee Chair Admiral Rob Bauer, in the framework of the February 16-17 Defense Ministerial in Brussels.

“NATO continues to provide strong political and practical support to both Georgia and Ukraine,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a meeting of the North Atlantic Council before meeting with the Georgian and Ukrainian defense ministers.

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According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Defense, the focus was on the upcoming NATO-Georgia 2022 joint international military exercise, which will be held in Georgia for the third time this March.

According to Stoltenberg, the allies support Georgia and Ukraine in different directions and this year exercises will be held with Georgia, which will demonstrate joint work, adding that the Black Sea region is of strategic importance for NATO, where Alliance has 3 members and 2 very close partners – Georgia and Ukraine. He emphasized that working closely with them is important to both them and their partners and their position on the Bucharest Summit decision has not changed….

As Stoltenberg noted, today NATO allies have reaffirmed their strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia and Ukraine and emphasized that NATO’s door remains open.

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Minister with Admiral Rob Bauer stressed the importance of the Alliance’s firm stance and maintaining its open door policy….

“We discussed our strategic plans and our future and we are united in all issues of principle,” Burchuladze said, adding “NATO will not back off from its goals and decisions and it is our unwavering decision to become a fully-fledged member of the European family.”

Burchuladze also participated in the meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Defense Ministers’ session with Georgia and Ukraine on 17th of February….

In addition, the Georgian Defense Minister met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at NATO Headquarters in Brussels. The sides discussed global security challenges. Burchuladze thanked Lloyd Austin for the strong support and strong position of the US Government on the security of Georgia and Ukraine.

The conversation also touched upon the issues of strategic cooperation in the field of defense and security between Georgia and the United States. Special attention was paid to the initiative of Georgia to strengthen defense and deterrence signed between the defense ministries of the two countries, which was signed during the visit of the US Secretary of State to Georgia.