Parliament EU Integration Committee Chair: “We will continue to work with EU to reduce illegal migration from Georgia”

Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's European Union Integration Committee, on Friday said authorities would continue working with member countries of the bloc to reduce illegal migration from Georgia.

In comments on the European Commission’s sixth report on the fulfilment of visa-free obligations by Eastern Partnership countries and the Balkan states, Botchorishvili said the report was “quite positive”. 

• Georgia continues to fulfil visa liberalisation benchmarks - European Commission Report

The cooperation between Georgia and the European Union, as well as the cooperation with EU member states, is evaluated as positive. The percentage of [asylum request] refusal is 50 percent, which is due to the fact that, in most cases, applications of asylum seekers are unsubstantiated and are not granted”, she said.

Botchorishvili also added it was “important” for Georgian citizens to “know that seeking illegal ways” to stay in EU member states was “harmful not only for the country, but also for them”.