European Parliament reaffirms Georgia’s commitment to Association Agreement, DCFTA implementation
552 MEPs voted for the report, while 61 others voted against it. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The report on the implementation of the EU-Georgia Association Agreement, which has been approved by the European Parliament with 552 for and 61 against, says that Georgia has remained committed to the implementation of the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) and is continuing its alignment with the EU standards,’ which is bringing increasing benefits.’
The document approved yesterday evaluates the progress made in the key areas such as political dialogue, rule of law, human rights and economic and sectoral cooperation.
Overall, the report presents a positive assessment of the implementation of the AA and progress in adoption of reforms and legislation.
Important progress has also been made in consolidating Georgia’s parliamentary democracy, following a constitutional reform and the agreement of the main political parties on 8 March 2020 regarding the electoral system to be applied in the parliamentary elections in 2020, after a prolonged period of internal political turmoil. The situation of the judiciary continues to be worrisome due to shortcomings of the selection procedures of judges and a series of cases against the opposition, which raised concerns about the impartiality of the legal system. Georgia is invited to implement the recommendations made to it by its international partners, such as the Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR,” said rapporteurs.
Welcome the European Parliament Report on Georgia’s Implementation of the Association Agreement. Grateful for EP’s strong and steady support to Georgia’s European integration, including through its various reports and resolutions @Europarl_EN ????????????????
— David Zalkaliani (@DZalkaliani) September 17, 2020
The report reads that Georgia continues to face ‘significant external challenges’, notably a worsening situation in its occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali / South Ossetia and cyber-attacks linked to Russian actors.
The EU remains Georgia’s steadfast supporter in ensuring respect of its sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders and the fundamental rights of its people,” said the report.
The report says that the European Parliament will continue to ‘closely work’ with the Parliament of Georgia, as its direct partner and a key actor in the implementation of the AA and the DCFTA, through the regular inter-parliamentary dialogue and the jointly-developed institutional support measures.
The European Commission said in its recent report on the fulfilment of the visa liberalisation requirements that Georgia continues to fulfil the benchmarks. The Commission notes in its introduction that this report focuses on specific areas where further action is necessary to ensure the sustainability of the progress achieved; therefore, benchmarks 'with a stable implementation record are not covered'.
Six years ago on June 27, Georgia signed the Association Agreement (AA) with the European Union in Brussels, which includes the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). The agreement fully came into force on July 1, 2016.
"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.
"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).
Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Gakharia held a number of meetings at European Union headquarters in Brussels, Belgium today, with the upcoming parliamentary elections in Georgia, Georgia’s aspiration for EU membership and further relations with European Union were high on the agenda.
The European Union has published its Association Implementation Report on Georgia, which says that the country ‘continued steadily on its European path including in the challenging COVID-19 context’. The document published earlier today reads that Georgia ‘has remained committed to the implementation, obligations and undertakings of the Association Agreement, despite COVID-19 related challenges’.