US Senator from Indiana Richard Lugar (Republican) introduced a bill on NATO expansion to Georgia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Montenegro. Barack Obama is to present a road map to accept the states at the NATO summit in Chicago in late May, Voice of America reports.
Lugar says that NATO expansion is essential for stability and political reforms in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Georgia receives US aid according to the program on NATO standards. The document says that Ukraine and NATO will continue cooperation.
Vladimir Yevseyev, Director of the Center for Socio-Political Studies, noted that there has been no NATO activity in Tbilisi. He believes that the main talks in Chicago would regard anti-missile defenses, because the anti-missile radar is to be built in Turkey, not Georgia, missile systems are located in Romania and Poland. Georgia has no role in the missile shield.
The situation may also be viewed in the light of statements made by foreign ministers of Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan, who said that their territories would not be used against each other. Georgia is dependent on Azerbaijan and Turkey. Talks on Georgia’s joining NATO have been postponed, at least until the presidential polls end. The problem will be less topical with resignation of Saakashvili and arrival of new power, the expert believes.
