Maltese MP says Georgia “should receive” EU candidacy in December
MP Glenn Bedingfield said his country supported the EU enlargement. Photo: Bedingfield’s Facebook
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Glenn Bedingfield, an MP in the Maltese Parliament, on Monday said Georgia should receive the European Union membership candidate status in December.
In a meeting with Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament, the MP also urged the country to proceed with democratic reforms, the Georgian Parliament’s press office said.
He also stressed both the Government and the wider public should be engaged in the country’s European integration efforts, and added receiving the status was a “merit-based” process and that his country supported the bloc’s enlargement.
The European Council has been scheduled to decide on Georgia’s stats in December, following the final report and recommendations by the European Commission in October on Georgia’s implementation of the reform agenda.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Saturday said the European Union had to show its “credibility and reliability” in supporting Georgian people’s European aspirations.
Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament’s European Union Integration Committee, discussed Georgia-EU relations, the country's European perspective and expectations for obtaining bloc’s candidate membership status this year, in her meetings with French officials, the Committee said on Friday.
Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's European Union Integration Committee, on Tuesday said the Government’s European partners were “acknowledging” the “mistake” of last year’s decision not to grant the country the European Union membership candidate status.
Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Thursday expressed her expectation that the European Union would take a “decisive step” this year based on ”fair” assessments and grant its membership candidate status to Georgia, encouraging the country to “move forward” on its European path together with other candidate countries.
Domagoj Hajduković, the Chair of the European Affairs Committee of the Croatian Parliament, on Monday said he hoped the “injustice” of European Union bodies denying Georgia the bloc’s membership candidate status in 2022 would be “corrected” with a decision on the matter later this year.
She stressed EU bodies granting candidate status to Georgia later this year and opening negotiations with candidate countries, together giving them a “clear roadmap” to EU membership, was the “only way” to go, and added “it requires strong support, and we count on you with this regard”.
Othmar Karas, the first Vice-President of the European Parliament, on Monday said he hoped there would be a “positive” decision on granting Georgia the European Union membership candidate status later this year.
Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Monday said her participation at the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for European Union Affairs in Madrid had demonstrated the issue of Georgia was on the agenda of EU member states “even more actively” than last year.
Iraikli Kobakhidze, the head of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday said the Georgian Government was “doing its best” to make sure “not even the slightest excuse” was left for the country to be refused the European Union membership candidate status for the second year running.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday highlighted his Government's “maximum effort” in its work to meet the priorities outlined by the European Union last year for granting Tbilisi its membership candidate status, in a meeting with Charles Michel, the President of the European Council.