“Only in Georgia” is “radical opposition” fighting against country’s EU integration - parliament vice speaker
Vice-parliament speaker Archil Talakvadze said on Wednesday that in contrast to other applicant countries, “only Georgia” had a domestic opposition “which is fighting against the country’s membership candidate status. Photo: Archil Talakvadze’s Facebook page
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Archil Talakvadze, the Georgian parliament’s vice speaker, on Wednesday said the domestic opposition had attempted to portray the conditions set by the European Union for granting the country the membership candidate status as “something very unusual and negative”, which he claimed stemmed from its efforts to act “against the country’s European integration”.
The ruling Georgian Dream party politician said the priorities set by the bloc for membership had also applied to Ukraine and Moldova - other aspirant states - as well as to any other country that had applied for membership.
He also said the report drafted by the EU with recommendations for Georgia to implement judiciary, electoral and other reforms in the process was “actually very positive and supportive”.
However, representatives of the radical wing of the opposition who are trying to cite the document in a negative context have not read the report at all. [Only] [t]hree or four of them might be aware of the content of the document”, Talakvadze claimed.
The parliamentary official also said in contrast to other applicant countries, “only Georgia” had a domestic opposition “which is fighting against the country’s membership candidate status and its integration into the bloc”.
Oliver Varhelyi, the European Union commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement, on Tuesday said Georgia required “national consensus” to meet the 12-point conditions set by the bloc for granting the country the membership candidate status.
Pawel Herczynski, the ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, on Tuesday said “constructive” involvement of the country’s opposition parties, along with the government, was “critically important” for the fulfillment of the 12-point conditions set by the bloc to grant the country its membership candidate status.
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Wednesday addressed citizens in countries of the Western Balkans as well as Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia by telling them “you are part of our family, your future is in our Union, and our Union is not complete without you”.
The fact that “serious work” on the implementation of the 12-point conditions outlined by the European Union to Georgia for membership is underway and both the ruling party and the opposition have presented their plans has “given us great hope”, David McAllister, the Head of a European Parliament delegation said in a joint press conference with Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili in Tbilisi on Wednesday.
Maka Botchorishvili, the Head of the European Integration Committee in the Georgian Parliament, on Thursday said it was “regrettable” to see domestic opposition and imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili “putting forth such great efforts” against the country’s European integration and trying to involve Georgia’s international partners in this process.