Prime minister of Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze, made his first official visit to Brussels as the head of the Georgian government. Following the eighth meeting of the Georgia-EU Association Council, a joint press conference was convened with the participation of vice-president of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, Irakli Kobakhidze, and European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy, Oliver Varhelyi. Borrell remarked, “This year will be a very serious test for Georgian democracy.”
“We have transitioned to a new strategic phase in our relations. The discussions held within the framework of the Association Council underscore our joint commitment to a steadfast path involving Georgia’s integration into the European Union. Although this journey commences now, in your case, it demands fresh efforts and heightened responsibility from the government—a position that will be acknowledged by all. Every individual, every Georgian, and every sector must be actively engaged in this process,” stated Josep Borrell.
According to him, there is a representative from the region, there is an EU observation mission, and this is the longest mission that exists in the region. Borrell emphasized that mission representatives do important work every day for the population of Georgia.
According to Oliver Varhelyi, if Georgia is ready to fulfill all recommendations for joining the EU by 2030, then the European Union should be ready to accept Georgia into its ranks, since “this is a two-way path.”
“We agreed to make progress on our way to the EU – there is still a lot of work ahead. We ask our Georgian friends to speed up the work – this concerns judicial reform and other reforms that we have identified together in nine points in order to move to the next stage. Because the goal of all this is for Georgia to join the European Union. We will not stop there; there is still a lot to be done even after receiving EU candidate status,” Varhelyi said.
“The Georgia-EU Association Council is important for relations between Georgia and the European Union, which once again underscores our historical achievement – Georgia obtaining candidate status for EU membership,” said the prime minister of Georgia. According to him, by 2030 Georgia will be more prepared for EU membership than any other candidate country. As Kobakhidze noted, this is an ambitious plan for Georgia.
Additionally, according to Kobakhidze, Georgia takes a very strong position towards Ukraine and supports it politically:
“Unfortunately, the Ukrainian government and officials have made several statements regarding the second front. These statements were made by the Chairman of the Security Council of Ukraine and presidential advisers, and this is very sad.”
“But I must emphasize that we maintain a very strong position on Ukraine – politically supporting Ukraine and providing humanitarian assistance. We share a deep and special friendship with the Ukrainian people, reflecting the sentiment of the Georgian populace. When it comes to aiding Ukraine, we stand ready to contribute.
Furthermore, we maintain a clear stance on sanctions against Russia. While we have not formally joined these sanctions, we hold strong justifications for our position. Nevertheless, Georgia remains committed to strictly adhering to any sanctions already in place. Thus, our policy stance is resolute and unwavering.
In summary, our position remains robust, and our unwavering political support for Ukraine is bolstered by the unique bond between the Georgian and Ukrainian peoples,” Kobakhidze stated.
