EU not granting Georgia candidate status would be ”another strategic mistake” - PM

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Friday said if the European Union did not grant the country the membership candidate status this year, the decision would be “another strategic mistake” on the part of the bloc.

In his speech at the Georgian Parliament to present the annual report on the work of the Government, Garibashvili noted the status was “symbolic” but also “important” for the next stage of the country’s EU integration.

I assure our European counterparts and friends during meetings that if they do not grant Georgia the status of a candidate country for the European Union, it will be another strategic mistake on the part of the European Union”, Garibashvili told lawmakers in reference to last year’s decision to only grant Georgia a European perspective.

He also called the latter decision a “big mistake”, noting the status had not been granted to the country despite it being “ahead of [fellow Associated Trio states] Moldova and Ukraine [which received the status] in all parameters and are still ahead today”.

The Government head claimed 11 out of the 12 conditions set by the European Commission for granting the country the status had been fulfilled, and said he hoped the country would receive the status by the end of the year.

Our European counterparts openly and loudly said [in last year’s decision] that Georgia would become a member of the European family. We have not heard such a vocal statement in the last 30 years. This, it can be said, is really a great achievement and recognition of our team's work, which certainly needs due recognition”, Garibashvili noted.

“We have proven over the last 10 years that we are a truly result-oriented Government that delivers specific results for our citizens”, he continued.

Garibashvili also stressed his Government expected a “reasonable and wise” decision from “our European friends”, adding granting Georgia the status would be “one of the main steps forward” in reducing polarisation of the political scene in the country.

The argument I made to my [European] colleagues is the following - one of the main conditions that has not been implemented, again due to the destructive sabotage and boycott of this irresponsible [domestic] opposition, is to reduce polarisation. It is probably impossible to end - there is polarisation in every country - but one of the main steps forward to reduce it would be the granting of the status”, Garibashvili told MPs.

“But the main thing for us [...] was the historic decision - and this is [also] how our European colleagues assessed it - of [the European Commission] granting Georgia a European perspective, which, it can be said, was not even possible to dream about during the previous [United National Movement] Government, because it was a completely abstract, unattainable goal and dream”, he concluded.