Deputy Commander of NATO JFTC Visits Georgia Ahead of Joint Drills

A NATO delegation headed by Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff of the Joint Force Training Center Brigadier General Jozsef Szpisjak has visited Georgia, in preparation for the third NATO-Georgia Exercise slated for March 2022.

Georgia, taking the lead on planning and implementing the exercise, hosted the delegation at NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Center Krtsanisi at a three-day coordination conference that concluded on January 28.

Brigadier General Szpisjak also held a working meeting with Deputy Commanders of the Georgian Defense Forces, Major General Zaza Chkhaidze and Brigadier General Irakli Chichinadze.

Brigadier General Chichinadze said the parties discussed the details of the upcoming drills as well as enhancing NATO-Georgia partnership in the realm of military exercises and education.

Brigadier General Szpisjak, on his part, commended those involved in the preparation of the exercise and expressed confidence the drills will be successful. “The JFTC looks forward to supporting our partners, the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation during the execution phase of NATO-Georgia Exercise 2022,” he noted. 

The Deputy Commander of the JFTC also visited Georgia’s Combat Training Center in Vaziani and observed field training of Georgian servicemen, the Georgian Defense Ministry reported today. 

The trip comes amid strained relations between NATO Allies and Russia, as Moscow demanded the Alliance to rescind the promise that Georgia and Ukraine will eventually become members and to bar any military activities or exercises near Russia. 

The upcoming NATO-Georgia Exercise will be held at the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Center (JTEC) on March 22 – 24. The exercise, conducted within the scope of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package (SNGP), aims to enhance Georgia’s interoperability with the Alliance and will be attended by military personnel from more than 20 NATO member and partner countries.

The most recent NATO-Georgia exercise took place in March 2019. The first NATO-Georgia exercise was conducted in 2016.

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