Georgian Defense Minister, Irakli Alasania, who started a week-long visit to the United States, will meet Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel at the Pentagon on August 21.

“Deepening military cooperation between the partner counties will be discussed,” the Georgian Ministry of Defense said. “Focus will also be made on the enhancement of Georgia’s defensive capabilities and [Georgia’s] participation in the international mission in Afghanistan.”

During the visit the Georgian delegation, which also includes Deputy Defence Minister Mikheil Darchiashvili, Chief of the Joint Staff of GAF Col Irakli Dzneladze and advisor to defense minister Vako Avaliani, will also hold meetings with officials from the National Security Council, Department of Veterans Affairs, Marine Corps and Defense Intelligence Agency. Alasania will also meet Chief of the National Guard Bureau General Frank J. Grass, according to the Georgian Defense Ministry.

Alasania is scheduled to speak about Georgia’s national security and regional security issues at an event organized by Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at Johns Hopkins University on August 21.

During the visit, Alasania will also visit Georgian servicemen, who were wounded in Afghanistan and now undergoing treatment at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.