Appathurai meets with Georgia`s FM, State Security Secretary
18.10.12 19:04
NATO Secretary General`s Special Representative to Caucasus and Central Asia, James Appathurai and Georgia`s Interim Foreign Minister held a face-to-face meeting at the foreign ministry today.
"I`d like to congratulate everyone on these elections. Who I`d like to congratulate is the government, that`s going out, the government that`s coming in and the Georgian people. This is a sign and a demonstration of Georgia becoming a normal country, normal country, where governments change thought the ballot box, where governments transition in a respectful way, respectful to each other and respectful of the law. That is a tribute to the people who came out to Georgian people, to the people, who are responsible for all these changes and also a result of the reforms that have taken place over so many years in this country. So I think everyone can be very proud of that. My message when it comes to NATO is very clear and that is a message of continuity - NATO remains absolutely committed to Georgia, we remain committed to the Bucharest decisions that Georgia will become a member of NATO. I`ve heard encouraging public remarks from the incoming government reflecting the broad will of the people for Georgian membership", Appathurai told media after the meeting.
Prior to it, the special representative held his first official meeting in Tbilisi with the State Security Secretary of Georgia Giga Bokeria. Reportedly, the sides discussed the political situation in Georgia after the parliamentary elections. The meeting was closed for media, though Giga Bokeria made comments for media after the meeting and hailed the visit of the NATO envoy was very timely and significant.
`We are glad to the visit of Mr. Appathurai to Georgia. Everybody knows that parliamentary elections in Georgia were mentioned as one of the tests for the development of democratic reforms in Georgia and therefore, as one of the tests in the process of the country`s integration into the NATO. Now, when we have passed this test and with all assessments, it was passed successfully, it is very important that discussion on progress of the negotiations are resumed as soon as possible,` Bokeria said.
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