Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Monday said the European Union and European friends had “directly stated” that Georgia “belonged to the European family” and the country would “definitely” become a member of the bloc, in comments summing up the foreign policy efforts of the Government in 2022.
In his remarks at the Ambassadors Conference, an annual event bringing together the heads of Georgian diplomatic missions abroad and units of the foreign office, Darchiashvili noted the current year had witnessed an “unprecedented event of historic significance” in the European Council granting Georgia a European perspective.
“With consistent policy, development of democratic institutions [and] continuity of reforms, our Government has created an important foundation for the success of the country's national goals - integration into the European Union and the Euro-Atlantic space”, Darchiashvili said.
In this regard, in 2022 - a year full of challenges - an unprecedented event of historic importance took place when the European Council granted Georgia a European perspective. Today, the European Union and our European friends directly state that Georgia belongs to the European family and that Georgia will definitely become a member of the European Union”, he continued.
The top Georgian diplomat stressed that with the decision made by the European Council the country had become part of the EU’s enlargement policy, “[a goal] for which Georgian diplomacy had been striving for many years”.
While restoration of ????????'s territorial integrity remains the major objective of the country's government, at the #AmbassadorsConference I highlighted the paramount importance of maintaining peace policy & directing efforts for the consolidation of international support. pic.twitter.com/rDqzs5mwjL
— Ilia Darchiashvili (@iliadarch) December 26, 2022
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili also addressed the two-day Conference where participants will summarise the foreign policy activities and achievements in 2022, and discuss the Government’s 2023 action plan.