Georgian Defense Minister Tina Khidasheli met her French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian in Paris on June 14.

“Our cooperation is in a very active phase. France is actively and meaningfully helping us in development our air defense capabilities,” the Georgian Defense Minister said after the meeting.

She said that upcoming NATO summit in Warsaw was also discussed.

Late last year Georgia entered into loan agreement with the French bank Société Générale for financing acquisition of air defense system from France. The loan is backed by the France’s export credit agency Coface.

EUR 52.65 million from the total loan amount was designed for purchasing unspecified equipment and services from ThalesRaytheonSystems, which produces ground-based surveillance radars and air defense command and control systems, and EUR 24.98 million was intended for acquisitions from missile manufacturer MBDA France.