Brigadier-General Vladimer Chachibaia has been promoted from the position of deputy chief of general staff of the armed forces to chief of staff, replacing Man. Gen. Vakhtang Kapanadze.

Vakhtang Kapanadze’s three-year term in office expired on November 22.

Vladimer Chachibaia, new chief of staff, has already served on this position – he was first appointed as chief of staff in November 2008 but quit the post four months later; then he served as deputy defense minister till August 2009. After serving at the Georgian Embassy to the United States as an adviser, he returned to the general staff as deputy chief.

Vakhtang Kapanadze said that he was offered to serve as Georgia’s military representative to NATO.

“I am sure that I will do a lot of good things there,” Kapanadze told reporters after the meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) on Monday.

It was the NSC’s first meeting following the parliamentary elections and along with ongoing changes in general staff of the armed forces, it also discussed participation of Georgian armed forces in international peacekeeping missions, implementation of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package and restoration of the conscription system by the Defense Ministry.

A decree annulling recruitment of conscripts by the Ministry of Defense was signed by then Defense Minister, Tina Khidasheli in June.

Incumbent Defense Minister Levan Izoria described this decision as “a populist and hasty” step, saying that the conscription system would be restored by spring and some modifications would be made to it.

“We are in favor of spring conscription,” President Margvelashvili said following the NSC meeting and stressed that “global vision” on the issues of conscription will be unveiled in mid-December.

The NSC meeting was attended by new Parliamentary Chairman Irakli Kobakhidze; acting Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili; Chairperson of the Parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee, Sopo Katsarava; Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze; Interior Minister Giorgi Mgebrishvili; Head of State Security Service, Vakhtang Gomelauri; new Head of National Security Council Davit Rakviashvili and Vakhtang Kapanadze. The latter attended the NSC meeting for the last time in the capacity of chief of staff.