During their visit to Georgia, the Permanent Representatives of the North Atlantic Council have demonstrated their support to Tbilisi’s desire of joining the North Atlantic alliance. Although the Georgian society does not object to the move, there are still many obstacles on Georgia’s road towards the membership
As expected, the visit of NATO representatives to Georgia was accompanied by harsh statements. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, NATO Secretary General, has once again criticized Russia for its decision to recognize Abkhazia and S. Ossetia and called on Moscow to change her decision.
Nevertheless, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also noted that Russia is a reality impossible to ignore. We do not punish Russia because it has confined itself to international isolation, he pointed out. Punishing Russia is not a way out. Instead, we should assist Georgia, he said.
Georgia regards the visit as another proof of its joining the alliance soon. “Despite our differences in opinions, the government, the opposition, and the society are all united by a most important goal, that of joining the North Atlantic alliance,” Speaker of Georgia’s Parliament David Bakradze said.
However, Russia is confident that the European countries are not willing to get involved in a large-scale conflict with Moscow. Dmitry Danilov, analyst with Russian Academy’s Institute of Europe believes that among other things, European countries are not impressed at all by Georgia’s human rights record, which may possess a serious obstacle to the membership.
Ali Aliyev
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