YEREVAN. – The official closing of NATO’s “Georgia 2012” field training exercise was held Thursday in Georgia.

The event, which had kicked off in the city of Rustavi on September 22 and during which a strong earthquake scenario was enacted, brought together over 1,000 people—comprising search and rescue teams, observers and experts—from 24 NATO-member and partner countries and from a variety of international organizations that respond to disasters, Armenia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) press service informs.       

During the closing ceremony, awards were given to those participants who stood out by their high-level professional preparedness, and members from MES rescue squad likewise were among the award recipients.

Head of the Armenian delegation, MES Rescue Service Director, Major General Sergei Azaryan also presented MES awards to the foreign participants of the training.   

As Armenian News-NEWS.am informed earlier, in line with the scenario of “Georgia 2012” field training exercise, a strong provisional earthquake had struck Georgia’s central part, and search and rescue teams from a variety of countries had rushed to provide help. According to the enactment, there were numerous casualties, injuries, and destruction. Also, this provisional quake had caused leakage of hazardous chemical substances, traffic accidents, floods, and fires.