Parliament official: most EU recommendations already implemented, Georgia expecting “fair assessments”, candidate status

Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Sunday said Georgia had already implemented most of the recommendations, outlined by the European Union last year for granting its membership candidate status and noted the country was expecting the bloc to “take a firm step” and grant Georgia the status based on “fair assessments”.

Georgia's application for EU membership in 2022 is a constitutional goal of the country, which is supported by more than 80 percent of the population of Georgia”, Botchorishvili said at the 12th meeting of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee in Brussels.

She highlighted Georgia’s potential to “open new geopolitical opportunities” and contribute to wider European security and prosperity and stressed granting the country the candidate status would “encourage” its progress on the European path, the Parliament press office said.

Photo via Parliament of Georgia

The implementation process of the EU’s 12 priorities and steps taken in this regard by the country were emphasised by the Georgian delegation at the Committee meeting. The Georgian side highlighted the implementation of recommendations as a “priority” to receive the status in December. 

The meeting was attended by the permanent delegations of the Georgian and the European parliaments, as well as representatives of the executive structures of Georgia, the Public Defender of Georgia and the institutions of the European Union.

The next meeting of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee will be held in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi.