Georgia aims for EU membership and a reset of relations with Brussels, says prime minister

Georgia's accession to the European Union remains the main task of the Georgian authorities, and an important step on this path is the reset of Tbilisi's relations with Brussels, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said.

On November 28, the Georgian authorities announced their decision to remove the opening of negotiations on the country's accession to the EU from the agenda until 2028. In response, the West accuses the Georgian authorities of rolling back democracy and calls for an immediate return to the EU path.

“Our task is obvious and clear. Our ultimate goal is Georgia's membership in the EU. We believe that by 2030, Georgia will be as ready as possible for EU membership, and, of course, it is also important to reset our relations,” Kobakhidze said.

The Georgian authorities will spare no effort, and everything else, according to the prime minister, will depend on the approach of European structures.

At the same time, the head of the Georgian government noted that the opposition's efforts are aimed at exactly the opposite: they seek to prevent the reset of relations. The prime minister said that the opposition's actions over many years have been characterized by deliberate sabotage.

“The goal is always the same — sabotage... These are ordinary agents who are constantly engaged in sabotage,” Kobakhidze said.

According to the prime minister, opposition representatives have been trying to obstruct the process since the visa liberalization discussions, and similar actions continued during the consideration of Georgia's candidate status and the start of negotiations on EU accession.

Opposition representatives claim that the authorities' decision to remove the opening of negotiations on Georgia's membership in the European Union from the agenda until 2028 is definitive proof that the authorities have shifted the country's foreign policy vector from the West toward Russia.

Georgia is currently a candidate country for EU membership. It was granted this status in December 2023, a year after Ukraine and Moldova, which the Georgian authorities called unfair.

In addition to granting candidate status, Georgia was given nine conditions for moving on to the stage of negotiations on integration into the European Union. These include overcoming polarization, de-oligarchization, ensuring free and competitive elections, and others.

Negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova began on June 25, while Georgia's rapprochement with the EU was suspended. EU Ambassador to Georgia Pavel Gerchinsky explained the decision on Georgia by the adoption of the law “On Transparency of Foreign Influence” and the anti-Western and anti-European rhetoric of government officials.

At present, the EU has frozen relations with Georgia, refused high-level meetings, suspended financial assistance and the country's integration into the union, citing failure to meet the conditions for starting negotiations.

Five EU countries, as well as the UK, the US and Ukraine, have imposed visa sanctions against about 200 representatives of the Georgian authorities.

Reprinted from https://sputnik-georgia.ru/