Georgia’s Defense Minister, Irakli Alasania, has suggested that it is too early now to make any prediction about a membership action plan for Georgia as “difficult” consultations are likely to continue up until last minute before the NATO summit in Wales in early September.

“I attended the NATO-Georgia Commission meeting [in Brussels on June 4] where it was clearly visible that the majority of our partners in NATO clearly voice that Georgia is ready for MAP,” Alasania told journalists on June 6. 

He said that formal discussions about how to address open door policy at the NATO summit in Wales will start after assessment reports of aspirant countries become available for the Alliance members in a week. NATO foreign ministers will meet in Brussels later this month to review these progress reports.

“Therefore, any statements on this issue [of MAP], whether positive or negative, are absolutely premature and I want to say from my experience that probably these difficult negotiations will continue till September,” Alasania said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after meeting with Georgian PM Irakli Garibashvili in Berlin on June 2 that she does not think MAP for Georgia will be on the agenda of the NATO summit in Wales in September. She also said that there are options other than MAP through which Georgia’s progress can be acknowledged in summit decisions.