Georgia urged to rethink NATO aspirations amid shifting US strategy, party says

Georgia must reconsider its pursuit of NATO membership in light of the United States' new national security strategy, which raises doubts about the alliance's future and expansion, the United Neutral Georgia party said.

The party issued a statement in response to the recently published US national security strategy, Caliber.Az reports via Georgian media. 

The party warned that the new US strategy puts Georgia’s long-standing goal of joining the alliance in jeopardy. The party urged the country to redefine its security approach, suggesting that NATO’s role in global politics is becoming increasingly uncertain. 

The new US strategy reportedly moves away from the notion of NATO as an indefinitely expanding alliance, potentially limiting future enlargement and even raising questions about the alliance’s long-term existence in its current form. This shift has serious implications for Georgia, which has long sought NATO membership, as the alliance officially no longer plans to accept new members, according to the party's statement.

The United Neutral Georgia party expressed concern that the US strategy not only calls NATO's future into question but also fails to mention the South Caucasus region altogether, leaving it “vulnerable to being used as a buffer zone" in future global confrontations. This omission, they argue, increases the region's risks in the changing geopolitical environment.

In response to these developments, the party called for a reevaluation of Georgia’s foreign policy priorities. They argued that Georgia needs to adapt to this new global reality, which involves moving away from what they described as an unrealistic "Euro-illusion" and instead pursuing a neutral status. 

By Sabina Mammadli