EU Commissioner Varhelyi: the EU stands by Georgia
Oliver Varhelyi said that the Georgian people are well aware of the value and price of freedom and independence and ‘we want to help Georgia maintain and increase this achievement.’ Photo: Government of Georgia/Facebook.
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European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi has stated that the European Union stands by Georgia during a joint press conference with Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili earlier today.
Oliver Varhelyi said that Georgia has overcome its recent political crisis and it is now possible to start working on a new stage of cooperation.
I must admit that I feel privileged by the partnership that Georgia has with the European Union...Georgia has gone through a phase of political polarisation and a political crisis and we have helped the country to solve these difficulties and we hope that these problems are in the past,” EU Commissioner Varhelyi said.
Varhelyi also noted that important progress has been made on electoral reform and now it is time for progress on judicial reforms.
When it comes to reforms, important progress was made on electoral reform. We now need to see progress also on judicial reform.
— Oliver Varhelyi (@OliverVarhelyi) July 7, 2021
EU Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi also commented on the violent incidents of July 5-6 in central Tbilisi, where right-wing activists held a counter rally of the Tbilisi Pride march and attacked journalists and burnt the EU flag.
Barbarianism begins with the burning of flags, but for me, it is not an important sign. The most important thing for me was that the Speaker of the Parliament, with his hand, returned the EU flag to its place. This is important to me,” said Oliver Varhelyi.
Everyone should have the right to unite, gather and express their views freely. That is why we want everyone to respect this freedom,” EU Commissioner Varhelyi noted.
I have also discussed recent developments with Prime Minister: there is no place for violence & vandalism. Those responsible need to face justice. Freedom of expression needs to be preserved for everyone. People of Georgia know the value of freedom, independence & liberty.
— Oliver Varhelyi (@OliverVarhelyi) July 7, 2021
He said that the Georgian people are well aware of the value and price of freedom and independence and ‘we want to help Georgia maintain and increase this achievement.’
Georgia is on the path of transformation and we will help the country with this, we want the administration, the judiciary and other guarantors of democracy to be supported,” said Varhelyi.
Oliver Varhelyi also presented an economic and investment plan earlier today and announced that the European Union (EU) will allocate €3.9 billion to help Georgia improve transport and logistics connectivity.
The European Union (EU) will allocate €3.9 billion to help Georgia improve transport and logistics connectivity, announces Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili after the meeting with European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi today. The €3.9 billion aid package consists of a €1.17 billion grant and the rest is a loan.
"There is no discrimination against differing opinions or lifestyles in Georgia”, Georgian PM Irakli Garibashvili said earlier today during a meeting with European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi. PM Irakli Garibashvili underscored that the foreign policy course of Georgia is Euro-Atlantic and is supported by the vast majority of the population, which ‘will not change.’
European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi has met with Georgian Parliament Speaker Kakha Kuchava earlier today and expressed gratitude to the parliament of Georgia for returning the EU flag ‘to its place’ after right-wing protesters burnt it earlier on July 6.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Kakha Kuchava has raised the European Union flag in front of the Georgian parliament building in the capital city of Tbilisi this morning after violent right-wing groups burnt EU and LGBT flags last night. The groups shut down a ‘silent’ demonstration held outside the Parliament of Georgia yesterday which was meant to protest the violent events of July 5.
The European parliament has called on the EU and NATO to maintain a close alliance with its aspirant countries, namely Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ukraine and Georgia for the security and stability of the region. The statement also calls on transatlantic partners, such as Georgia, to maintain regular contact in the areas of arms control, military transparency and any other issues related to security.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani said that Georgia must gain candidate status for EU membership by 2030 at a presentation of his ministry’s 10-year action plan earlier today. Zalkaliani noted that the goal is to apply for EU membership in 2024 and to get the status of a candidate for membership by 2030.
The EU Commission has increased the assistance package for six Eastern Partnership countries from €40 million to €75 million in order to ‘deploy safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines and speed up the vaccination campaigns.’ Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine will receive the additional €35 million as a part of the assistance package ‘to substantially increase access to vaccines in the Eastern Partnership region amid the global vaccine shortage.’
Oliver Varhelyi, the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, on Monday said the European Union “fully supports” Georgia's efforts to strengthen stability against the backdrop of the challenging situation created for the security in the Black Sea region.