European Council’s June decision “confirmed Georgia’s clear EU perspective” - EU High Representative Borrell
Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, called on Georgian political actors to unite for Georgia’s European Union membership candidacy. Photo: Government of Georgia press office
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Josep Borrell, the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said the European Council had “confirmed Georgia’s clear European perspective” in June, in comments following the EU-Georgia Association Council meeting in Brussels on Tuesday.
Stressing the importance of the Council meeting he co-chaired, with the gathering held for the first time since Georgia gained the European perspective from the Council and was given several months by the Council to address its 12-point conditions for obtaining the EU membership candidate status, Borrell said “political forces of Georgia should seize this historic opportunity”.
In his previous comments, the EU official had stated joining the EU was a “merit-based process, there are no shortcuts, no detours, there is a political will, a political declaration that will grow into results, and only visible, accessible and tangible outcomes lead to progress on this path”.
Chaired the first EU - Georgia Association Council since #EUCO confirmed #Georgia’s clear EU perspective.
— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) September 6, 2022
Political forces of Georgia should seize this historic opportunity to advance on the EU path. The EU stands ready to accompany you along the way. pic.twitter.com/PEUvHSbIuX
Co-chairing the meeting, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said his Government had taken the European perspective with “great responsibility” to ensure the “highest political and economic compatibility with the European Union”, and stressed it was doing “its utmost” to gain the EU candidacy for the country.
In further details, the PM said that “immediately” after the European Council had granted Georgia the European perspective, Georgian Dream authorities had presented a strategy to fulfill the 12-point conditions for the membership candidate status and invited “all political actors” and the civil society to participate in the “inclusive process”.
However, Garibashvili noted that despite the ruling party and the Georgian Government “opening doors” to “all political players”, some of the domestic political parties - including the United National Movement, the largest opposition party - had refused to participate in the work.
Oliver Varhelyi, the European Union Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Policy, on Tuesday said Georgia was a “country with a recognised European perspective” and called for a “message of encouragement” in comments following the EU-Georgia Association Council meeting in Brussels.
Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Tuesday expressed his confidence that the Georgia-European Union Association Council meeting would prove a “very important impetus” for the acceleration of the country’s European integration.
The European Council’s decision to grant Georgia European perspective and the “effective steps” needed to be taken by the country to receive the membership candidate status were discussed on Tuesday in a meeting between Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative in Brussels.
The process of joining the European Union must be based on the consensus of the “whole nation” and everyone should work together, not only the government but all political parties, Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy said on Tuesday at the joint press conference with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi in Brussels.
The European Union-Georgia Association Council highlighted the “historic importance” of the decision of the European Council to recognise the European perspective to Georgia and underlined the future of Georgia and its citizens “lies within the European Union”, in a joint press statement on Wednesday.
Ruling Georgian Dream party head Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday said the messages voiced during and after the recent European Union-Georgia Association Council meeting in Brussels this week on the country’s European integration process were “very positive”.
Josep Borrell, the European Union high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, on Tuesday said the implementation of the 12-point conditions for obtaining the EU membership candidate status was not only the Georgian government’s job but “everyone”, including citizens, should stand together to fulfil the recommendations.
Josep Borrell, the vice president of the European Commission and high representative of the European Union for foreign affairs and security policy, on Thursday said the bloc would “step up” its work in support of cyber defence capacity building of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova among other partners.