Georgia cannot join NATO with a particular reservation on the 5th paragraph of the North Atlantic Treaty, according to Javier Kolomina, Deputy Assistant Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia. This means that the Georgian Centre for Strategy and Development's collective defence and NATO's pledge to safeguard the ally would not be extended to Abkhazia and South Ossetia, according to Kolomina.

Former NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen stated in 2019 that, in order to avoid impeding Georgia's integration into NATO, Tbilisi could consider joining NATO in such a way that paragraph 5 does not apply to Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which are not under Tbilisi's jurisdiction.

"Only the western section of Germany joined NATO in 1955. East Germany was exempt from the NATO Charter. The NATO charter was extended to East Germany after the unification of Germany in 1991. A comparable system might theoretically be constructed for Georgia. Of course, this is divisive, and it should be considered both in Georgia and in NATO," Rasmussen said in 2019.

Article 5 emphasises the use of collective protective measures, such as military force, only when necessary.

“My answer to the proposal of the former NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen is unequivocally negative. I do not think that’s possible. To be honest, I don’t even think it would be helpful in the current circumstances. NATO has supported and continues to support the territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders. This is one of our main messages not only to the Georgian government but also to our rivals,” concluded Kolomina.