Georgia signs Association Agreement with the EU

Georgian PM Irakli Garibashvili arrived to the European Council in Brussels. Photo by PM's press office.
Agenda.ge, 27 Jun 2014 - 11:33, Tbilisi,Georgia

Georgia has taken a monumental step forward and signed the Association Agreement (AA), which includes the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) with the European Union (EU).

The occasion has been lauded as a historic step in which the country will make great political and economic progress.

Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili was Georgia’s representative and signed each page of the 1,135 document. President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso and President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy signed the AA document on behalf of the EU.

The document will also be signed by the EU’s 28 member state leaders.

Although it may take several years before all EU-member states ratify the agreement, the treaty envisages provisional application parts of the agreement even before EU members and the European Parliament complete the ratification process.

Georgian Parliament is expected to ratify the agreement in the second half of July.

After Georgia ratifies the AA, provisional application could start by October, 2014.