U.S. supportive of Georgia's bid to join NATO

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- The United States will support Georgia's bid to join NATO, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel confirmed Sunday.

"Because Georgia is such a committed and dependable partner of the United States, we fully support Georgia's ongoing defense modernization efforts and we want to and will continue to help Georgia fulfill its Euro-Atlantic aspirations, including membership in NATO," Hagel said following a meeting with Georgian Minister of Defense Irakli Alasania in Tbilisi on Sunday.

Georgia achieved enhanced NATO partner status at the NATO summit in Wales that concluded Friday, a step Hagel noted is "especially important, given the dangerous and irresponsible actions of President Putin."

Russian President Vladimir Putin's "illegal annexation of Crimea, which the United States does not recognize, and the ongoing military campaign Russia is mounting in eastern Ukraine," said Hagel, "pose a grave threat to regional stability, as had its actions inside Georgia's internationally recognized borders."

As a NATO partner, Alasania and Hagel discussed ways that Georgia can also play a role combating the threat posed by the Islamic State, also known as ISIL. Hagel and Secretary of State John Kerry announced Friday the establishment of "a broad international coalition to degrade and, ultimately, to destroy the threat posed by ISIL."

Alansia confirmed Georgia's commitment to helping the U.S. "eradicate these barbarians." When asked what type of support Georgia was prepared to offer, the defense minister replied: "we have developed quite an institutional building experience that will help probably the Iraqis to put together their own armed forces. Training, exercises, these are the things that can come to our mind..."