Georgia refuses to take EU loan, Europe claims it did not fulfill conditions for macro-financial assistance

EU stops macro-financial assistance to Georgia

The EU Delegation to Georgia stated that the country’s government did not fulfill the conditions for macro-financial assistance. For this announcement, a special briefing was held on August 31 in response to a statement made several hours earlier by the Georgian government which said that it refused to accept the second part of Europe’s macro-financial assistance.

The EU delegation paid special attention to the problem of the independence and non-accountability of the judiciary system.

It is stated that in the selection of judges of the Supreme Court, the recommendations of the Venice Commission were not followed: “There was no level playing field for candidates, a number of legislative changes aimed at increasing the transparency of the judicial system were not implemented”.

Aid of €150 million was disbursed in November 2020 to help Georgia cope with the pandemic and its impact on the country’s economy. Half of the amount was transferred immediately, the transfer of the second part was scheduled to take place before the end of 2021.

The conditions for the provision of macro-financial assistance were among the obligations outlined in the agreement signed on April 19, 2020 by the authorities and opposition with the mediation of the President of the European Council Charles Michel.

“The European Union confirms its readiness to fully support Georgia’s reforms in accordance with the Association Agreement. But aid will continue to depend on progress made in implementing key reforms”, the EU delegation said.

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“Georgia does not need 75 million euros because it has a strong economy”

Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili announced on August 31 that the government is refusing to receive 75 million of the EU aid.

“Georgia has very good, strong economic growth. The government has begun to reduce its external debt, and it no longer needs the second part of EU assistance”, Garibashvili said.

Some experts and politicians consider such a government decision to be a direct deviation from the country’s Euro-Atlantic course.

“The suspension of the 75 million EU aid means a loss of at least ten times more, because all potential investors will move Georgia into a high-risk zone and stop their activities there “, said expert Gia Khukhashvili.