PM Garibashvili: High chance Georgia will gain visa free regime this year

The Prime Minister of Georgia is confident the country will be offered a visa free regime with European Union (EU) countries by the end of the year.

There is a very positive attitude in the European Union to Georgia and during my last visit to Brussels we received information that by the end of the year, with high probability, Georgia will hear a positive solution in terms of visa liberalisation with EU states,” said Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili today at a Governmental meeting in Tbilisi.

The meeting, held at the Government’s Administration in Georgia’s capital, gave Garibashvili the chance to speak about the country’s visa liberalisation efforts and he stressed the current leadership had fulfilled all its obligations to be offered a visa free travel regime with the EU.

Georgia's Prime Minister stated that the process of deeper assimilation with Europe was launched under the current Government. Photo by Prime Minister's webpage. 

Over the past three years we have done our utmost to meet all the obligations. I want to thank all Georgian state bodies for this,” Garibashvili said.

He noted it might take several months for the EU to grant Georgia a visa free travel regime due to the current complicated situation in Europe. Additionally, all 28 EU member states must agree and confirm the organisation’s decision to grant Georgia a visa free regime before it can be implemented.

Garibashvili told his Government that establishing visa free travel to the EU was not on the agenda of the previous leadership. He went on further to say some current members of opposition United National Movement (UNM) were against Georgia being offered visa liberalisation under the Georgian Dream (GD) coalition Government.

The process of deeper our assimilation with Europe was launched under our Government. Moldova launched the process earlier and received visa liberalisation,” Garibashvili stressed, and noted UNM members Davit Bakradze and Giorgi Kandelaki tried to persuade Georgia’s foreign partners not to grant the country a visa free regime.

What can this action be called, if it’s not treason to your people and homeland?” Garibashvili questioned.

However, he stressed Georgia was on a one-way path towards visa liberalisation and said the EU remained positive to Georgia and its current authorities.