NATO Military Committee, made up of senior military officers from NATO member states, started a two-day visit to Georgia on February 11.

NATO Military Committee, which is the primary source of military advice to the Alliance’s civilian decision-making bodies, will hold a session in Tbilisi on February 12 with the participation of chief of general staff of the Georgian armed forces, Major General Vakhtang Kapanadze.

During the visit, chairman of NATO Military Committee, General Knud Bartels will hold bilateral meetings with President Giorgi Margvelashvili, PM Irakli Garibashvili, and Defense Minister Irakli Alasania.

Defense Minister, Irakli Alasania, said that this visit is very important as it will be a good opportunity for the Alliance to look into reforms in the Georgian armed forces and assess country’s readiness for making next step on its NATO integration path.

“Goals that we have on our path towards NATO will be discussed. The progress is obvious and this visit itself shows it,” chief of general staff of the Georgian armed forces, Major General Vakhtang Kapanadze, said on February 11.

This is the first visit of the NATO Military Committee to Georgia. The visit was originally planned for November, 2012 but at the time it was postponed after then chief of staff of the Georgian armed forces, Giorgi Kalandadze, was arrested.