European Council President Donald Tusk: “EU and Georgia are true partners”

The European Union (EU) has pledged to cooperate "even more comprehensively” with Georgia as it pursues political association and economic integration with the EU.

President of the European Council Donald Tusk voiced the EU’s support for Georgia after he met Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili in Brussels, Belgium this afternoon. This was the first time the pair met after Kvirikashvili was appointed Prime Minister of Georgia.

EU and #Georgia, true partners. My statement after meeting with PM @KvirikashviliGihttps://t.co/GiKZtUeupipic.twitter.com/queYRm2CfE

— Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) February 9, 2016

Tusk tweeted the same in Georgian too.

ევროკავშირი და #საქართველო–ნამდვილი პარტნიორები. განცხადება პრემიერმინისტრთან @KvirikashviliGiშეხვედრის შემდეგ https://t.co/GiKZtUeupi

— Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) February 9, 2016

At a joint press briefing after the meeting President Tusk praised Georgia for its "outstanding reforms” as it worked towards visa liberalisation.

"[At the meeting] we discussed the issue of visa-free travel for Georgian citizens. Let me congratulate Georgia on the outstanding reforms undertaken in this process,” Tusk said.

"Georgia has fulfilled all the benchmarks of the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan. It is now for the [European] Council and the European Parliament to bring this process to a successful conclusion.”

Tusk named several other topics the pair covered today. These included:

• The need of a pluralistic media environment before the upcoming Parliamentary Elections in Georgia;
• Continued reforms of the judiciary;
• Georgia’s territorial integrity; and
• Russia’s actions in Syria.

"It is crucial that criminal investigations and prosecutions be evidence-based, transparent and impartial in line with the commitment of the Association Agreement,” Tusk said, adding rule of law and human rights were "important priorities” and the EU was ready to assist Georgia as it worked on these.

Watch the full video of the joint press statements of European Council President Donald Tusk and Georgia's PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili below:

President Tusk underlined the EU would continue to give its "firm support” for the territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders. He recalled the so-called borderisation process along the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) between Georgia and its breakaway Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region during his last visit to Georgia in July 2015.

He also shared Georgia’s concerns about the continued implementation of so-called treaties between Russia and Georgia’s breakaway regions Abkhazia and Tskhinvali.

Tusk expressed the EU’s "strong appreciation” for Georgia’s "important contribution” to EU crisis management operations and missions, including its operations and missions in the Central African Republic, Ukraine and Mali.

The European Council President also touched on Russia’s activities in the Middle East and said: "[Russia’s] actions in Syria are making an already very bad situation even worse.”

"As a direct consequence of the Russian military campaign, the murderous regime of [Syrian president Bashar] al-Assad gaining ground, moderate Syrian opposition is losing ground and thousands more refugees are fleeing towards Turkey and Europe.”

Kvirikashvili began his remarks by thanking the EU for its "longstanding support” for Georgia’s European choice and for President Tusk’s personal contribution to this.

Thank you @eucopresident for your commitment to Georgia’s European path. Next step is visa free travel #Visa4Georgiapic.twitter.com/d7EdBvw5VY

— Giorgi Kvirikashvili (@KvirikashviliGi) February 9, 2016

"We value the unique relationship that we have developed with the EU through the political association and economic integration process. Let me reiterate our firm commitment to activate the full potential of this relationship,” the Georgian PM said.

He also stressed the importance of Georgia’s visa-free regime to the EU and said: "As the technical requirements have been fully met, we hope that the visa-free regime will be shortly introduced for the citizens of Georgia.”

"This achievement will be a strong demonstration for Georgia and other partners that the European choice delivers concrete results.”

Speaking to media Kvirikashvili highlighted Georgia still faced challenges and grave humanitarian consequences of occupation and creeping annexation of its territories by Russia. In this respect, he said Georgia highly valued the EU’s "unwavering support” for Georgia’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.

Kvirikashvili also highlighted his country’s ambition to make Georgia a "success story of the European integration in the region”.

"In this respect, we share the common commitment to the Eastern Partnership as a concrete policy framework to make our vision a reality,” he said.

Visit to Brussels

Prime Minister Kvirikashvili is paying a two-day visit to Brussels, on February 9 and 10. While there he will meet a number of EU high officials, including:

• Dimitris Avramopoulos, the European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship;
• Johannes Hahn, the EU Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations;
• Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission President;
• Herbert Salber, the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the Crisis in Georgia;
• Miguel Arias Canete, the Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy; and
• Maros Sefcovic, the European Commission Vice-President, Commissioner for Energy Union.