At the Chicago summit on May 20-21 NATO will acknowledge “in a very visible way” both what “Georgia has achieved and what it contributes to the trans-Atlantic alliance”, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in an interview with RFE/RL.

Asked whether Georgia, which is set to become the largest non-NATO troops contributor to ISAF, was any closer to NATO membership, Rasmussen responded: “The Chicago Summit will not be an enlargement summit, but we will definitely acknowledge the progress Georgia has achieved during recent years.”

“We will acknowledge that progress in our declaration from the summit. We will also acknowledge Georgia's contributions in a very visible way,” he said.

“Actually, Georgia will participate in three important meetings in Chicago. Georgia will participate in the ISAF meeting on Afghanistan. Georgia will participate in a special-partnership event, a gathering of 13 partners across the globe that contribute to NATO operations in a very significant way and Georgia is among these 13 partners and actually one of the largest contributors to our operation in Afghanistan. And finally, Georgia will also participate in an aspirant-countries meeting at the level of foreign ministers,” Rasmussen said.