TBILISI. Feb 9 (Interfax) - Georgian Interior Minister Giorgi Mgebrishvili on Thursday met with a delegation of the U.S. Department of Defense's Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) led by DTRA Deputy Director Rear Adm. Scott Jerabek, which had arrived in Tbilisi for a working visit, to discuss cooperation in the development of Georgian border infrastructures.
Mgebrishvili indicated close and fruitful cooperation with DTRA in the equipment and the provision of security of the Georgian state border, which yielded many successful projects and enhanced the border service's capacity, in particular, in the fight against transborder crimes, the Georgian Interior Ministry said in a report.
The minister accentuated the electronic monitoring control center, which opened in the Saldakhlo border sector of the Georgian-Armenian border last year, and the DTRA-backed projects bolstering the Georgian Coast Guard. He said he expected marine security cooperation to develop.
"The projects supported by the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency are helping Georgia increase the security of its borders and maintain regional stability; they also play a big role in the process of Georgia's Euro-Atlantic integration," the ministry quoted Mgebrishvili as saying.
Rear Adm. Jerabek described the Georgian Interior Ministry as a reliable partner and expressed his gratitude for the successful implementation of joint projects. The partnership with Georgia has reached a climax; this is the best partnership and, hopefully, it will successfully develop in the future, the admiral said.
The interlocutors discussed the ongoing and prospective projects to be implemented in Georgia in collaboration with DTRA, the report said.