Tbilisi, Georgia, Sept. 6
By Nana Kirtzkhalia - Trend:
NATO approved a package of measures to promote Georgia in its bid for membership in the alliance, NATO secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Sept. 5 at a NATO's Wales summit.
"Today we have agreed on a package of measures for Georgia, which will help it move forward in preparation for the membership in the alliance," Rasmussen said.
He stressed that "NATO's door remains open."
"We will evaluate each country based on its merits," the secretary general of the alliance said.
Package of NATO-Georgia cooperation, which brings the relationship to a new level and provides for a number of specific decisions, is almost agreed with all member states of the alliance, Defense Minister Irakli Alasania said.
"The new package includes the opening of NATO training center in cooperation with Georgia, where military of alliance and NATO partner countries will be trained," he said. "Moreover, NATO has agreed to support Georgia in the acquisition and supply of defensive weapons, so that the country would have the opportunity to defend itself in case of aggression," he noted. "Also, a group of military experts of NATO will operate under the Georgian Defense Ministry and the Armed forces headquarters, which will coordinate the implementation of the agreements within the framework of a new package of cooperation", Alasania added.