The majority of Georgians would like to see the country join NATO, but consider it is unlikely to happen in the near future, an opinion poll has shown.
The U.S. National Democratic Institute poll revealed that 26% of respondents said they "totally support" joining NATO and 36% said they support "on the whole" the former Soviet republic joining the military alliance.
Only 2% believe Georgia will enter NATO in 2011, while 12% think it could happen in 2012-2013. On the other hand, 11% said they do not believe Georgia will ever join NATO and 56% were unsure.
The opinion poll was carried out on April 11-26 among 2,378 respondents in different regions of Georgia with a 3% margin of error.
Georgia has long been pursuing NATO membership, but its bid was turned down due to pressure from Germany and France at a 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest.
However, NATO has stated that the country will join at an unspecified date in the future.
TBILISI, May 6 (RIA Novosti)
