Georgia takes part in evacuation efforts from Afghanistan
By Nika Gamtsemlidze
Monday, August 30
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia announced on August 26 that Georgia would support an international effort aimed at the urgent evacuation of people employed by International Organizations and Institutions from Afghanistan.
The military cargo planes of the NATO Military Cargo Transportation Organization are using the Tbilisi International Airport to perform daily flights to and from Kabul. Various charter flights have been performed to evacuate people from Kabul to Tbilisi airport.
The Regional Transit Hub was established at the Tbilisi International Airport and at the military base station of Georgian Defense Forces near the airport with the engagement of Georgian, Norwegian, Swedish, and other NATO member states.
The Georgian side has also agreed to honor the application of several international organizations, such as the National Endowment for Democracy, NED, the Intentional Republican Institute, IRI, the Asian Development Bank, ADB, the International Monetary Fund, IMF, as well as the World Bank, WB. As a result, the country will also assist in the evacuation of the staff of these companies for temporary placement in Georgia.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia David Zalkaliani said that Georgia has to play an important role as a transit country in ensuring the withdrawal of the Member States' armed forces from Afghanistan.
“It was a thoroughly organized process. Evacuated people were flown by military cargo planes to the Tbilisi International Airport where they were redirected to various countries of Europe. This process is still ongoing and involves all our respective agencies, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense. The entire process is led by the Prime Minister’s office, in close coordination with our partners,” said Zalkaliani.
In addition, according to the decision made by the Georgian Prime Minister, Irakli Garibashvili, the Georgian side sent water, as humanitarian aid, to Kabul Airport.
According to Revaz Javelidze, Deputy Head of the Government Administration, Georgia stands by its international partners and is actively involved in managing both humanitarian and evacuation processes.
The Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, Carl Hartzell went to Twitter and wrote about the steps taken by the Georgian side. “Thank you, Georgia, for your strong support to the evacuation from Kabul which allowed EU member states to swiftly and safely transit and transfer via Tbilisi airport,” wrote EU Ambassador to Georgia.
Yesterday, on August 29, it was announced that the European countries are finishing up the evacuation from Kabul Airport. According to Western media reports, the pace of evacuation measures at Kabul airport has slowed and the Taliban is preparing to take control of the airport.
