The News in Brief

Georgia Hosts Trojan Footprint 2026 Special Operations Exercise

Georgia is hosting the U.S.-led multinational special operations exercise Trojan Footprint 2026, co-organized by U.S. Special Operations Command Europe and the Georgian Defense Forces.

Georgia's component, Black Sea Gateway 2026, features land and maritime operations and includes special operations units from Georgia, the United States, Poland, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Romania. The exercise runs simultaneously across several Eastern European countries.

The opening ceremony was held at the Special Operations Command base in Mukhrovani, outside Tbilisi, and attended by Georgian Defense Forces representatives, defense attachés from participating countries, and members of the NATO-Georgia Substantial Package core group.

Georgia is hosting the exercise for the fourth time, having previously done so in 2024, 2022, and 2021.



Georgians Second-Largest Group Returned from EU in 2025, Down from First Place

Georgia ranked second among nationalities returned from the European Union in 2025, with 10,475 Georgian citizens sent back, according to Eurostat. Turkey ranked first with 13,405 returns, followed by Syria, Albania, and Russia rounding out the top five after Georgia.

Georgia had held the top spot for the previous two years, with 12,050 returns in 2024 and 10,360 in 2023. The total number of return orders issued to Georgian citizens also fell, from 17,945 in 2024 to 14,095 in 2025, placing Georgians ninth on that list. Overall, the EU returned 135,460 people in 2025, the highest figure since 2020.

Georgian citizens also ranked seventh among nationalities refused entry at EU external borders in 2025, with 4,785 refusals recorded, the majority at air borders.

Under Eurostat methodology, a return refers to a non-EU citizen staying illegally in a member state who has officially left EU territory.