The NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s Autumn Session in London adopted six resolutions on October 14, appealing among others for Alliance leaders’ to reaffirm NATO’s Open Door Policy towards Georgia.
The resolution Reaffirming Commitment to NATO’s Founding Principles and Values, presented by the Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security, denounces the Russian Federation’s “aggression against Ukraine and Georgia.” It also calls on the NATO member governments and parliaments “to take a more proactive approach in promoting and protecting democratic values within the Euro-Atlantic community and beyond.”
In particular it urges them “to reaffirm commitment to NATO’s Open Door policy as a tool to spread the zone of stability and democratic standards in Europe, to support the Euro-Atlantic integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine, and to help strengthen their resilience against foreign interference.”
The resolution NATO @ 70: Celebrating 70 Years of Peace and Security Through Unity, presented by the Political Committee, also urges NATO member governments and parliaments “to continue supporting its partners in the East – Ukraine and Georgia in particular – against Russian interference, and to maintain, and if possible increase, assistance for their reform processes, especially for those countries aspiring to integrate into Euro-Atlantic structures (currently Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia and Ukraine).”
Official remarks
NATO PA President Madeleine Moon, who recently visited Georgia, condemned “the illegal occupation” of Georgia and Ukraine at yesterday’s plenary session. “It’s not just words. We show our support and our solidarity unambiguously,” Moon stated. According to Moon, her visit to Tbilisi over a month ago, demonstrated the commitment to Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations. It also aimed to “learn first hand” how Georgia is coping “with direct Russian aggression,” she added.
“Just two weeks ago, I visited the administrative boundary line with Russia, now set around South Ossetia… Russia wants that line to become a defined border entrenching the illegal division of Georgia. Consequently, Russia periodically moves the border forward. It pays no attention to the lives and livelihoods of those, whose families and properties are divided,” Moon said.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also addressed the NATO PA yesterday. When asked by the Head of the Slovenian Delegation Matej Tonin the question, “when we will see Georgia as a full member of NATO,” Stoltenberg responded that “NATO’s door remains open,” and that “Georgia will become a member of NATO,” however, he said “we have not put a timeline to that process.”
“We support the efforts of Georgia to modernize, to strengthen its defense and security institutions to meet the NATO standards. So, that is something which we are working on, together with Georgia. And I think it’s also important to remember that, even without membership, we have seen more NATO in Georgia,” the NATO Secretary General stated.
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