Parliament Speaker: “successful” democratic transformation has made Georgia “clear frontrunner" in Eastern Neighborhood
In an op-ed published by civil.ge, Papuashvili claimed the EU had "reneged" at the time of a “real decision" on Georgia’s EU candidacy last year, granting the country a mere European perspective instead of the full membership candidate status. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
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Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday said Georgia’s “successful” democratic transformation over the last decade had made the country a “clear frontrunner" among the members of the Eastern Neighborhood initiative of the European Union.
In an op-ed published by civil.ge, Papuashvili claimed the EU had "reneged" at the time of a “real decision" on Georgia’s EU candidacy last year, granting the country a mere European perspective instead of the full membership candidate status.
For all these years, Georgia did its best to become a member of NATO and get into the EU, despite the real and present danger of Russian reprisal for doing so. Despite becoming fully interoperable with NATO, developing democratic institutions beyond the alliance’s entry-level standards, and codifying European and Euro-Atlantic integration into its constitution, Georgia has been left out in the cold ever since NATO committed itself to make Georgia an alliance member in April 2008, at the NATO Bucharest Summit”, Papuashvili said.
The Parliament official stressed the EU story had been a "somewhat greater” success for the country.
“Under the Georgian Dream administration, Georgia signed the Association and Free Trade agreements and achieved a visa-free travel regime with the EU”, he noted.
Papuashvili highlighted that despite Georgia’s “significant” democratic transformation in the last decade and “our best efforts” to get into NATO and the EU, “we never received the deserved reciprocal steps”.
With all this in mind, we call on our partners, instead of directing undue criticism at us, to help us to overcome our security predicament and achieve well-deserved membership in NATO and the EU. For over 15 years now, the ball is on the Western side, in both EU and NATO courts. It is time for the EU, in particular, to invest in long-term peace by taking the next immediate step to support Georgia’s candidate status this year and to open negotiations for European Union membership without delay”, he concluded.