Georgia’s EU member state ambassadors, FM meet in Berlin to discuss coordination, efforts for EU candidacy
FM Ilia Darchiashvili highlighted a “positive mood” among the country’s partners for Georgia’s EU candidacy prospects. Photo: Foreign Ministry press office
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Georgian ambassadors in European Union member states, Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili and officials from the country’s foreign office on Wednesday gathered in Berlin to discuss coordination and efforts for Georgia’s EU membership candidate status.
The diplomats and officials reviewed the ongoing implementation of the 12-point conditions outlined by the bloc last year for granting the status to Georgia, the importance of further strengthening internal coordination and efforts of individual ambassadors to facilitate the country’s European integration, the foreign office said.
Darchiashvili highlighted a “positive mood” among the country’s partners for Georgia’s EU candidacy prospects, which he said was encouraging his Government to do “its best” to reach the goal, before noting the country’s authorities were moving “constantly” to the bloc’s “appropriate decision”.
He also highlighted the importance of “active communication” between the country’s representatives in the bloc’s member states and decision-makers in respective host states, for ensuring the status is granted to Georgia by the end of this year.
Georgia officially applied for EU membership on March 3, 2022, shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ahead of the original schedule of submitting its application in 2024. It was granted a European perspective by the European Council in June and a reform agenda for receiving the candidate status.
Pawel Herczynski, the European Union Ambassador to Georgia, on Friday congratulated the country’s Government on a “positive report” on Georgia’s alignment with the European Union, released by the European Commission on Thursday.
The European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council on Monday confirmed Georgia had made “significant progress” in “many key reforms” carried out in the country’s efforts for integration into the bloc, and highlighted the roles of rule of law, human rights, media, civil society and independent state institutions as “important elements” for each country aspiring to join the bloc.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has praised a “historic day” for Georgia with his signing of the country’s bid for European Union membership on Thursday, saying the move “continues the efforts of our ancestors, which was aimed at unification in a common European family.”
Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, on Thursday said the body had granted the European Union membership candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova, and was ready to grant the same status to Georgia once the outstanding priorities outlined by the European Commission were addressed by the Georgian Government.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday said a "lesson" of the "turning point" of the ongoing war in Ukraine was to support accession of Ukraine, Western Balkan states, Moldova and, "in the future", Georgia to the European Union.