Georgia will launch construction of a new NATO-standard military base in Gori, a town in Shida Kartli region, near the South Ossetian conflict zone, this year, the Georgian Ministry of Defense (MoD) reported on May 26.

President Saakashvili has already signed a relevant decree, according to the MoD.

Georgia already has one new NATO-standard military base in Senaki western Georgia.

President Saakashvili said on May 15 that another new military base “should be [constructed] somewhere near the highway so that our citizens can see it and be proud of it, while our enemies should have no desire to walk near it.”