Tag Archives: NATO

Georgia expresses eagerness to join NATO

JUNE 8 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — At a conference in Washington, Georgian defence minister Tinatin Khidasheli said that NATO should be doing more to secure Georgia as a member of the Western military alliance. She said that by approving Georgia’s NATO membership, the group would be sending a message to Russia that it can’t be intimidated. Georgia is desperate to join NATO but some members are wary of upsetting Russia.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 284, published on June 10 2016)

Georgia’s def minister flies to Afghanistan

JAN. 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgia’s defence minister Tina Khidasheli flew to Afghanistan to meet some of the 870 Georgian soldiers based in the country as part of the US-led Operation Resolute. Georgia has the second largest number of soldiers in Afghanistan. It views the soldiers as part of a wider diplomatic push to try to join NATO.

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(News report from Issue No. 263, published on Jan. 15 2016)

Armenia complains to NATO

OCT. 19 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia has complained to NATO about an incursion by the Turkish military into its airspace earlier this month. Turkey is a NATO member and has stepped-up activity in the east of the country to counter the IS extremist group. Armenia’s military said that on Oct. 6 and Oct. 7 a Turkish military transport helicopter strayed into its airspace.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 253, published on Oct. 23 2015)

Georgia joins Nato force

SEPT. 29 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Keen to further burnish its Western orientated credentials, Georgia said it would sign up to the NATO Response Force (NRF). Georgian PM Iraki Garibashvili said that Georgia would create a unit of 100 soldiers for the force which is designed to deploy rapidly to protect NATO members. Finland, Sweden and Ukraine are other non-NATO NRF members.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 250, published on Oct. 2 2015)

Georgian soldier dies in Afghan

SEPT. 21 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – A Georgian soldier, Private Vasil Kuljanishvili, was killed while on patrol outside Bagram airbase in Afghanistan, Georgia’s ministry of defence said. Kuljanishvili’s death means that 31 Georgian soldiers have died in Afghanistan supporting US operations against the Taliban. Georgia wants to join NATO.

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(News report from Issue No. 249, published on Sept. 25 2015)

NATO opens training base in Georgia

AUG. 27 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary-General and Georgian Prime Minister Irakly Garibashvili opened a NATO training base outside Tbilisi, a move that Russia has said it would interpret as antagonistic. Georgia wants to join NATO but, although relations have become closer, NATO has rebuffed its membership so far.

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(News report from Issue No. 245, published on Aug. 28 2015)

Azerbaijani Defence Minister visits Lithuania

JULY 1 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan’s defence minister, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov, visited Lithuania for meetings with his Lithuanian counterpart Juozas Olekas and PM Algirdas Butkevicius. This is important because it shows how Azerbaijan is trying to boost its connections in Europe and with NATO members.

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(News report from Issue No. 238, published on July 2 2015)

Georgia PM says no to gay marriages

JUNE 29 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – TBILISI — In the wake of the decision by the US Supreme Court last week to legalise same sex marriages, Georgian PM Iralkli Garbashvili promised a constitutional ban on homosexual marriages in Georgia.

His decision plays well to Georgia’s conservative society and highlights the divide between the country and the far more liberal West, whose groups Georgia aspires to join.

“As a prime minister and a citizen, I will do everything to include a clause in the constitution that defines marriage and the family as the union of a man and a woman,” Mr Garibashvili said in an interview with a conservative newspaper Asaval-Dasavali.

It is not the first time he has suggested changing the constitution to include the definition of marriage. Last time was in 2014, when parliament discussed an anti-discrimination bill required by the EU for further integration. The Georgian Orthodox Church heavily criticised the bill in 2014 as it forbade discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

According to the Caucasus Research Resource Centre opinion polls, the majority of Georgians support EU and NATO membership, and the US is seen as Georgia’s main ally but 88% of Georgians also said that homosexuality can never be justified.

These views are easy to find on the streets of Tbilisi.

“Sure, the US is a friend to our politicians. But gay marriages just don’t look pretty, do they? Here, in Georgia, we don’t like such kind of people,” said Giorgi, a hairdresser.

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(News report from Issue No. 238, published on July 2 2015)

Georgian President meets UK PM

JUNE 19 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili met British PM David Cameron in Bratislava on the sidelines of a global security conference. Georgia wants to join NATO.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 237, published on June 25 2015)

US gives military aid to Georgia

APRIL 29 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – The US will give Georgia $20m to update its military, media reported. The cash comes at a sensitive time with Russia and the US increasingly at odds with each other over Ukraine. NATO has also said that it plans to set up a training base in Georgia.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 229, published on April 29 2015)