NATO fleet visits Georgia's port of Poti

TBILISI, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Georgia's port of Poti Monday hosted four vessels of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Standing Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2), according to the country's border Police.

In a statement posted on its official website, the border Police said that the fleet led by Commodore Boudewijn Boots included HNLMS Evertsen of the Royal Netherlands Navy, TCG Yildirim of the Turkish Navy, BGS Drazki of the Bulgarian Navy and ROS Regele Ferdinand of the Romanian Naval.

The statement said the fleet commander will meet Georgia's Coast Guard Department head as part of the visit, while the crews under his command will join Georgia's coast guard service for exercises at the Black Sea.

Two Georgian coast guard vessels will participate in the scheduled sea maneuvers with the SNMG2, aimed at improving interoperability between NATO forces and Georgian crews.

The NATO vessels will stay in the port until April 4.

Poti, located in the western part of Georgia, is a major seaport off the eastern Black Sea coast.