Georgia and US sign defense agreement

TBILISI (TASS): Georgian First Deputy Defense Minister Lela Chikovani and US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia Laura Cooper signed a 10-year framework agreement on defense cooperation between the countries in Tbilisi. This was reported on Friday in the press service of the Georgian Defense Ministry.
“Today, a framework a-greement was drawn up, w-hich for a period of 10 ye-ars or even more will help increase the defense capability of the Georgian De-fense Forces and will ensu-re the conduct of a containment policy,” the press se-rvice quoted Chikovani.
The Deputy Minister noted that the completed document is a continuation of the “Initiative to Strengthen Defense and Deterrence Measures for Georgia”, which was signed in October 2021 between the Ministers of Defense of Georgia and the United States, Juansher Burchuladze and Lloyd Austin in Tbilisi.
A delegation from the US Department of Defense takes part in Tbilisi in bilateral consultations in the field of defense.
At the meeting, the parties have already discussed the reforms carried out in the Georgian army, as well as plans for the future. Chikovani and Cooper reaffirmed the importance of the strategic partnership between Georgia and the United States to protect common values and strengthen common security interests, the Defense Ministry added.
Georgia and the United States have been cooperating since 1992 in the fields of politics, economics, tra-de, and since the late 1990s – in the field of defense and security. In January 2009, the Charter of Strategic Partnership between the two countries was drawn up in Washington, which provides for the development of cooperation in matters of security, defense, trade, economy, culture, and also in the humanitarian field.