Georgian government: Geographic location prevented us from obtaining EU candidate status
Government of Georgia on the decision of the European Commission
The first comments were made by the Georgian government after the European Commission did not recommend granting the country the status of an EU candidate.
According to Irakli Kobakhidze, chairman of the ruling party, all tangible progress towards the EU has been achieved by Georgia “under our government”. According to him, the European Commission’s recommendations for “deoligarchization” apply to Mikheil Saakashvili and David Kezerashvili, and not to Bidzina Ivanishvili.
“Bidzina Ivanishvili is a businessman and philanthropist. In addition, he ceased to be in power in 2012, so Bidzina Ivanishvili is out of the question”, Kobakhidze said.
The Chairman of the Georgian Dream also emphasized that the geographical position also prevented Georgia from obtaining the status. According to Kobakhidze, “we have been waiting for the recognition of Georgia’s European perspective for years, we are glad that the commission has officially recognized it”.
Kobakhidze answered a question about the reforms that the European Parliament calls on Georgia.
“The official document lists the steps that Georgia should take. And these conditions for obtaining candidate status are in line with the agenda of the Association Agreement. Certainly, appropriate reforms will be carried out on these points. Despite many serious obstacles, we managed to take another step towards the EU.”
The European Commission prepared a report on the issue of granting the status of an EU candidate to Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova on 17 June. As a result, Ukraine and Moldova will receive the status of a candidate member of the EU and will be required to fulfill certain obligations, and Georgia will first be obliged to fulfill the conditions, and then get a chance to get the status of a candidate.
Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova jointly applied for EU membership. Georgia applied for EU membership on 3 March. All three countries filled out the EU questionnaires, where they answered more than 3,000 questions.
A resolution on violations of media freedom in Georgia and the safety of journalists was approved by the European Parliament on 9 June.
“This resolution is worth nothing”, “The European Parliament has fallen victim to fakes”, “European parliamentarians want to open a second front in Georgia” – these and similar statements were made by members of the ruling party in response to the critical resolution.
