Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili spoke to the media recently about the results of the NATO summit in Vilnius. He said that in the past few days, several Georgian opposition television channels had misinterpreted the decisions taken at the summit. Mocking the broadcasts, he said:
You know… at first they presented a picture as if some miracle had happened at the NATO Summit… [as if] Ukraine had already been accepted as a member, and a miracle had taken place, while Georgia was left behind.
But PM Garibashvili argues that the reality is quite different. Apart from the fact that they said at the summit that they would waive some of the criteria for Ukraine, there was no breakthrough.
Ukraine cannot become a NATO member until it defeats Russia. So the question arises, however: if Ukraine defeats Russia, what is the point of NATO membership?
– PM Irakli Garibashvili asked the rhetoric question, adding that NATO's strength lies precisely in its ability to protect smaller countries from larger aggressors.
The NATO summit made it clear that Ukraine can only join the defense alliance after winning the war with Russia, he emphasized.
The NATO summit was held in Vilnius on 11-12 July. It resulted in the publication of a final document stating that the alliance remains committed to its pledge made at the Bucharest summit in 2008, namely that Georgia would become a member of NATO through the Membership Action Plan (MAP).
Georgia's NATO membership became a priority after Russia attacked the country in the Caucasus region in 2008, causing it to lose control of two of its former provinces, South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
To ensure effective cooperation between the defense alliance and Georgia, the NATO-Georgia Commission (NGC) was established in 2008 to ensure close political cooperation in support of reform efforts and Euro-Atlantic integration.
Cover photo: Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (Source: Twitter/Irakli Garibashvili)
