Georgia's PM says committed to joining NATO
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said on Tuesday that his country is committed to joining NATO, but must solve its territorial problems with Russia before that.
He made the statement while attending an economic conference in Qatar, reuters reported.
Earlier on Monday, at least 1,20,000 Georgians took to the streets in support of the country's EU membership bid, after the European Commission recommended deferring Tbilisi's candidacy.\
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Waving Georgian, Ukrainian, and EU flags, demonstrators flooded on Monday evening the main throughfare of the Georgian capital Tbilisi.
In what was the biggest demonstration in decades, at least 120,000 people took part in the "March for Europe" in Tbilisi, according to an AFP estimate based on video footage shot from drones.
Many held placards that read "We are Europe" as the EU anthem, the Ode to Joy, was performed at the demonstration.
The rally was initiated by the Black Sea nation's leading pro-democracy groups and supported by all of the opposition parties to "demonstrate the commitment of the Georgian people to its European choice and Western values".
"Europe is a historical choice and an aspiration of Georgians, for which all generations have given sacrifices," the rally organisers said on Facebook.
One of the organisers, rights activist Shota Digmelashvili, read out a manifesto announcing another rally on Friday and the launch of a "new popular movement" that will include opposition parties but will be dominated by civil activists.
"We will formulate our demands to the government and if it fails to meet them, the force of a non-violent resistance will sweep off all those who derails Georgia from its European path," he said.
"Popular wrath will be directed against (the ruling party founder) oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili" who is widely believed to be calling the shots in Georgia despite having no official political role.
