Azernews.Az

By Jamila Babayeva

NATO's Secretary General Andres Fogh Rasmussen says the body sees a "significant progress" in Georgia.

He made the statement after a meeting with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili in Brussels on February 5.

The coalition chief also expressed hope that Georgia's significant progress in recent times will be highlighted at the alliance's summit in Wales.

"It is not the job of the third countries to decide how NATO should behave while conducting the open door policy. We will prove at the upcoming summit that our doors remain open. We will continue to evaluate the countries that want to become the alliance's members. The final decision will be made after this," he said.

He noted that Georgia is a strong and committed NATO partner.

"Georgia plays an outstanding role in our operations. Georgia is implementing important reforms. And today we see a more mature democracy in Georgia, after free and fair presidential elections last year," Rasmussen said.

He noted that there is still work to be done for integration in the Euro-Atlantic community.

"But Georgia has moved much closer to NATO. And we will continue to work together with Georgia to help achieve our common goals", he said.

Garibashvili in turn said Georgia will continue moving towards NATO.

"We discussed our mission in Afghanistan, where Georgia is the first contributor among the NATO member states. We will continue to participate in this mission. Georgia has an opportunity and a desire to be among the participants of the Euro-Atlantic security. Along with some 14 missions, we will continue to serve in Afghanistan," he said at a briefing.

Garibashvili noted that Georgia's NATO aspirations are supported by a major part of the country's population.

"The Georgian government is sparing no effort to continue the reforms that will bring Georgia closer to NATO and the roadmap, as well as other tools will help us in achieving this goal. Based on the achievements, we hope that we will be closer to NATO," he said.

Georgia has been assisting the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan since 2004.

Georgia indicated its willingness to continue to support the development of the Afghan security forces, after the completion of ISAF's mission at the end of 2014.