TBILISI. Jan 14 (Interfax-AVN) - A group of NATO experts has arrived in Tbilisi to prepare the official opening of an office of the NATO Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia, Nikolai Laliashvili, chief of the defense policy and European integration department in the Georgian Defense Ministry, told Interfax-Military News Agency Friday.
According to him, the office will open in Tbilisi in February.
"It will be in Tbilisi, but will deal with Azerbaijan and Armenia, rather than Georgia only," he added.
He emphasized that the NATO special representative's appointment is an extremely important event for his country in terms of stepping up the interaction with the Alliance, especially in light of the organization's approving of the program of cooperation with Georgia in 2004.
The decision to send liaison officers and a special representative of NATO to Transcaucasia and Central Asia was made at the NATO 2004 summit in Istanbul.
U.S. citizen Robert Simmons, NATO Deputy Secretary General, was appointed the Alliance's Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia, who is expected to visit the countries in the region from time to time. NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer introduced Simmons to leaders of the countries in question during his November visit to the South Caucasus.
The Tbilisi office will also include Romualds Razhuks, the 49-year old advisor to the Latvian defense minister and the former vice speaker of the Latvian Seimas, who will be the liaison officer coordinating the activities with Simmons.
Georgia voiced its intent to join NATO during the Prague summit in 2002.