Ruling party MP: important for Georgia to have “adequate expectations” on EU prospects

Maka Botchorishvili, the Head of the European Integration Committee in the Georgian Parliament, on Monday said it was “important” for the country to have “adequate expectations” on the European Union’s upcoming decision on granting it the membership candidate status, following her meeting with EU Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski.

The Georgian authorities are well-aware that [granting of the status] is ultimately a political decision by member states. Of course, the technical part of the process - the implementation of the [EU] recommendations [for Georgia] - also matters”, said the lawmaker. 

The MP said the European Commission had completed its deliberation on the document that would assess the preliminary work done for eventual integration of Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova into the bloc.

We also know that Georgia has quite high evaluations in all fields, and the topic has also been discussed with the Ambassador. This document is now undergoing final political discussions in EU institutions and we hope to have an opportunity to look into it soon, which will allow the Government to better assess the country’s European prospects”, Botchorishvili said. 

Botchorishvili said she had discussed Georgia's EU integration prospects with the EU Ambassador. Photo: Maka Botchorishvili's Facebook page. 

The Committee Head also pointed out Herczynski had “detailed information” over the Government's moves to implement the 12-point conditions set by the bloc in June for granting Georgia its membership candidate status.

Botchorishvili said she had also discussed practical questions - including sectoral cooperation with the bloc - at the meeting with the Ambassador.

Georgia applied for EU membership in March 2022, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine the month prior. In June, Ukraine and Moldova were granted EU membership candidate status with conditions, while Georgia received a European perspective and conditions for receiving the candidate status this year.