Strategic Discussions 2016
By Tea Mariamidze
Friday, December 16
Tbilisi Strategic Discussions 2016, held by the initiative of Georgia’s President Giorgi Margvelashvili and the National Security Council, gathered more than one hundred Georgian and international experts in Georgia’s capital.
The Discussions aim to offer to security representatives an inclusive format, where the experts will express their opinions, set priorities and recommendations about the security of Georgia and the whole region.
The Discussions were opened by President Margvelashvili, who spoke about the choice of Georgians, the importance of Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration and its geopolitical role in the region.
"Georgian society has clearly chosen the path of democracy. This is a choice of free people to live in a free society,” said the President.
He underlined that Georgia’s aim is to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and to be a part of the common space with the countries, who share the same values as Georgia.
“We look forward to Euro-Atlantic integration. Georgia’s joining NATO means peace, security and stability in the region. That, in turn, will promote regional and transcontinental cooperation projects, which are vital for the countries in the region,” Georgia’s President said.
Margvelashvili stressed that 20% of Georgian territories is occupied by Russia and only membership of NATO would make Georgia stronger, more stable and more secure.
“It is important to strengthen our cooperation in the context of hybrid war prevention. Unfortunately, Georgia has 25 year experience in hybrid war. Studying and sharing this experience will enable us to timely prevent it and stop its spread,” he stated and underlined that joint efforts were necessary to fight informational attacks targeted against Georgia , other states and the Alliance itself.
The President hoped that in the frames of the Tbilisi Strategic Discussions, all subjects operating in the security filed - the government, the parliament, the presidential administration and experts - would hold in-depth, frank and result-oriented discussions.
The event attracted several high-ranking politicians, such as ex-president of Latvia Valdis Zatlers, former Foreign Minister of Estonia Marina Kaljurand, as well as the National Security Council staffs of Romania, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria and the heads of NATO diplomatic missions.
