Borrell highlights Georgian Gov’t’s “good work” in combating evasion of Russia sanctions

Josep Borrell, the European Union High Representative, on Friday highlighted Tbilisi’s “good work” in combating Russia’s circumvention of international sanctions imposed on it for its invasion of Ukraine last year. 

In a press briefing with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili in Tbilisi, the EU official stressed the efforts by the Georgian Government for the purpose should be “emphasise[d]”.

• Borrell says “no doubt” Georgia belongs to European family in “key messages” for visit

Borrell also condemned claims of Western bodies attempting to “drag” Georgia into the ongoing conflict as “disinformation” and “fake”, and said the narrative was backed by Moscow and aimed at reducing trust in the EU in the Georgian public.

He also highlighted the importance of “compatibility” and presence of “joint positions” between the EU and its applicant countries on priority topics in foreign policy. 

The visiting official noted Georgia’s compatibility with the EU’s position to ensure a common approach on priority issues was “not very high”, and added “this indicator should be improved”.