Georgia, eager to join NATO, opens training center

TBILISI, Georgia, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- Georgia will move closer to NATO membership with the opening of a new training center, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Stoltenberg spoke of Georgia, a former Soviet republic, as a "strong and reliable contributor to our shared security" at ceremonies opening the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre at the Krtsanisi Military Facility. NATO and Georgian troops will train at the site, whose development is part of a number of measures, decided at a September summit meeting to increase Georgia's defense capabilities.

Secretary-General Stoltenberg mentioned the country's democratic reforms and its "commitment to being part of the Euro-Atlantic family" which will serve Georgia in its hopes for NATO membership.

"Georgian forces will grow more interoperable with NATO. NATO will be more present, and more visible in Georgia. And Georgia's commitment to international peace and security will grow even more. There is more Georgia in NATO and more NATO in Georgia, and all these efforts help Georgia move closer to your aspiration of NATO membership."

After the United States, Georgia is the largest contributor of military personnel to the NATO mission in Afghanistan, with nearly 900 soldiers.

Russia, which fought a war with Georgia in 2008 over two breakaway republics, has said Georgia's NATO membership would threaten its security.