Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 4
By Kamila Aliyeva – Trend:
Georgia, despite the support of the United States, has a little chance of joining North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the short term, David Phillips, Director of the Program on Peace-building and Rights at Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights, told Trend.
He also mentioned that, NATO, at this sensitive stage, doesn't want to antagonize Russia, which doesn’t support the idea.
“Mike Pence was rhetorically reiterating the US commitment to Georgia's NATO membership in the long term, as called for in the 2008 Bucharest statement,” the expert added.
US Vice President Mike Pence reassured his country’s strong support for Georgia’s ambitions of becoming a NATO member at a meeting with Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili in Tbilisi on Aug 1.
At the April, 2008 Summit of NATO member countries in Bucharest, it was confirmed that Georgia may become a NATO member in the future, if it meets NATO standards.