US, Georgia presidents discuss military cooperation, possible free trade agreement

Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 31 / Trend R.Darakhshan/ United States and Georgia have agreed to a high-level dialogue between the two countries on ways of strengthening trade relations, including the possibility of a free trade agreement, US President Barack Obama told a briefing in Washington following his meeting with Georgian counterpart. Obama said that during the meeting he expressed his gratitude to Mikheil Saakashvili for "the extraordinary contributions that have been made by the Georgian military in Afghanistan", the official website of the White House reported. "They have been one of the most dedicated contributors outside of NATO to the ISAF effort, and in fact have taken on some significant casualties as a consequence of those efforts", said the US. president. According to him, the two presidents also discussed the strengthening of defence cooperation. "I reaffirmed to the President [Saakashvili] and assured him that the United States will continue to support Georgia's aspirations to ultimately become a member of NATO", said Obama. Obama also said the U.S. appreciates the Georgian model of democracy and transparency. Mikheil Saakashvili expressed his gratitude to the Obama administration and the United States for their continued support and cooperation at all levels. "We are very grateful for elevating our defense cooperation further and talking about Georgia's self-defense capabilities and developing it", he said. Do you have any feedback? Contact our journalist at agency@trend.az