Tbilisi, Georgia, Feb. 3
By Nana Kirtzkhalia - Trend:
Sport has always been an opportunity to go beyond politics, the NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, James Appathurai told Georgian Public Broadcaster on Feb. 3.
He said that this is an opportunity of meeting for the representatives of those countries that usually don't cooperate in diplomatic or military spheres.
"Our support for Georgia remains strong and the fact that NATO Military Committee is to visit Georgia during the Sochi Olympics may not be linked directly to Sochi, but it is a signal that we support Georgia," Appathurai said. "If Georgia's participation in the Olympics makes it possible for Georgians and Russians to better understand each other, then it will be useful for everyone, and I believe that participation in the Olympics was a right decision from the Georgian government".
He went on to add that from the NATO perspective the new Georgian government's approach is good.
"I would not say that it fundamentally differs from that of the previous government. This includes the support for Euro-Atlantic integration path, as well as, an attempt to establish better relations with Russia. These two things are not incompatible. We believe in this. So we support those path followed by the Georgian government," Appathurai added.
Translated by E.A.