Georgian soldiers attend the graduation ceremony for the "Sustainment and Stability Operations Program", a training program to help bring the Georgian military up to NATO standards, at the National Military Training Centre "Ktsanisi" outside Tbilisi.
Photo: Reuters
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Opposition Calls for Neutral Georgia
One of presidential candidates from the opposition, Irina Sarishvili opposes Georgia's entry to NATO and pushes for holding a referendum on Georgia’s neutrality, RIA Novosti reported.
Imedi will soon go to the Central Election Commission to get forms for signature collection. We need 200,000 signatures to call a referendum and ask the Georgians whether they want neutrality for their country, Sarishvili told reporters Friday after meeting with the U.S. Ambassador to Georgia John Teft.
If the Central Election Commission refuses to give forms, Imedi will independently hold the poll and get at least 1.5 million signatures for Georgia’s neutrality, Sarishvili vowed.
Sarishvili asked the U.S. ambassador if NATO was intending to station military bases in Georgia. The answer was “no” but it doesn’t mean anything, the Imedi leader pointed out, explaining that NATO’s membership will aggravate relations with Russia.
In Georgia, the plebiscite was held along with early presidential elections on January 5. No official results have been announced, but according to the pollsters, some 61 percent leaving the polling stations said they had voted for the NATO.
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