Georgia’s Poti port hosts NATO vessels

By Trend

The Georgian Border Police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is hosting Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) in the territorial waters of Georgia in the port of Poti, Trend reports citing Georgian media.

As reported, within the visit, SNMG2 will conduct combined maritime exercise training with the Georgian Coast Guard vessels.

The visit is being held in full compliance with the recommendations of the World Health Organization and Georgia’s National Center for Disease Control (NCDC).

The aim of the maritime exercise is to enhance interoperability between the Georgian and Allies forces.

The combined exercises will only include ship maneuvers without crew interactions in order to prevent possible spread of the coronavirus. All public and cultural events within the visit have been cancelled.

SNMG2 will remain in Poti port until April 10.

Meanwhile, the NATO vessels visited Georgian ports twice in 2019, in April and October.

Relations between NATO and Georgia date back to 1992 when Georgia joined the North-Atlantic Cooperation Council (NACC). The latter was replaced by the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) in 1997 as a forum for discussions between NATO and partners.

In 1994, Georgia joined the NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP) program and since 1996, the country has been actively participating in training and exercises within program.