EU envoy: European migrant crisis will not hamper Georgia’s visa liberalisation
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The European migrant crisis will not hamper Georgia’s visa liberalisation pace, says a European Union (EU) envoy in Georgia.
Head of the EU Delegation to Georgia Janos Herman believed the migrant crisis would not be reflected on the country’s visa liberalisation process and said the EU would decide Georgia’s fate based on the achievements of the country and whether it fulfilled obligatory benchmarks.
"I am confident the migrant crisis that covered several EU countries will not affect this process,” Herman said.
"The EU does its best to develop a common policy to solve the problem but I think this will not be reflected on the EU’s work assessing Georgia’s achievements.”
EU experts are preparing a report about how Georgia fulfilled its obligations stated in the country’s Visa Liberalisation Action Plan (VLAP). The document will be ready by mid-December. At this time the EU will decide whether or not to grant Georgia visa free travel to the Schengen zone.
On the same topic: Riga Summit: View from inside
European Council President Donald Tusk thinks it is possible for Georgians to travel without visas to European Union (EU) countries in 2016.
A political decision has been made on the visa free regime between Georgia and the European Union (EU), and only technical procedures need to be finished, said Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili at the Eastern Partnership (EaP) Summit in Riga today.
"Georgia's progress has been significant in a short period of time" but the country "still needs to address the remaining recommendations” says the European Commission in its latest report on Georgia's implementation of its Visa Liberalisation Action Plan (VLAP).
In Lithuania today Georgia's Justice Minister met several high-ranking Lithuanian officials including the country’s Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and head of the Seimas (Parliament of Lithuania).
The idea to create a Georgia branch of the Development Agency of France (AFD) was discussed in the context of developing Georgian-French economic ties, stated Georgia’s Foreign Ministry.
Georgia’s Foreign Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili has met High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Vice President of the European Commission Federica Mogherini today in Brussels, Belgium.
Latvia is supporting Georgia's goal to be granted a visa-free regime with the European Union (EU).
Estonia believes Georgia and the European Union (EU) will soon reach an agreement on visa free travel.
"It can be said with almost 99 percent certainty that a visa free regime will be introduced for Georgia next year,” believes Andrejs Mamikins, the European Parliament’s rapporteur for Georgia.
The European Union (EU) is planning to introduce visa free travel with Georgia and Ukraine by mid of 2016, reports German newspaper Die Welt citing an unidentified EU diplomat.
Georgia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs has high expectations of an upcoming Council of Europe (CoE) report because the Ministry has fulfilled all its obligations necessary to gain a visa-free regime.
Parliament of Georgia today adopted a statement that will be sent to relevant structures of the EU prior to the December 15 release of a Council of Europe (CoE) report whether Georgia had met all its obligations towards visa liberalisation with the EU.
Georgia’s European future was the focus of a meeting between Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili and head of the European Union (EU) Delegation to Georgia Janos Herman. The two officials met earlier today at the Government of Georgia Administration building in capital Tbilisi.
Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili will address the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) next week as a keynote speaker about major challenges facing the modern world.