EU High Representative says bloc “concerned about trajectory” of Georgia

Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, on Thursday expressed his concern about the “trajectory of Georgia moving away” from the bloc.

Borrell’s comments followed an informal meeting of the EU’s foreign ministers on Thursday in Brussels.

We also briefly discussed the situation in Georgia, where we are increasingly concerned about the trajectory of this country moving away from the European Union”, he said in reference to the controversial law on transparency of foreign influence that sparked criticism from the country’s western partners.

The law, adopted by the Georgian Parliament in late May, calls for registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they derive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad.

The EU and the United States have also expressed disapproval of the law, leading to suspension or delay of several aid packages to Georgia. The ruling Georgian Dream party has labelled the actions as “unfair”.