Parliament Speaker: 2024 should be “year of rapprochement” with EU, NATO
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said 2024 should “become the year of rapprochement” with the European Union and NATO, in comments of his 2023 report in the legislative body. Photo: Parliament
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Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said 2024 should “become the year of rapprochement” with the European Union and NATO, in comments of his 2023 report in the legislative body.
Papuashvili told MPs the ruling Georgian Dream Government had made “unprecedented progress” in “moving toward Europe” over the past decade.
It is necessary to continue and accelerate this progress. The Parliament has done an immense amount of work to implement the 12 recommendations [outlined by the European Commission for Georgia to receive the membership candidate status, granted in December] and deepen sectoral integration”, he said.
The official claimed Georgia was “ahead of many EU candidate countries in objective parameters”, but the “ultimate goal” was full EU membership.
Papuashvili also highlighted the importance of ensuring “peaceful and fair” parliamentary elections in October, which he said was “in the best interests of all responsible parties”.
Photo: Parliament of Georgia
The Speaker noted several reforms had been implemented in electoral legislation, to “practically exclude any kind of speculation” on electoral fraud.
Papuashvili also mentioned “increasing aggression and violence” around the world in his comments.
Several of our partner democracies are under unprecedented pressure from Ukraine to the Middle East. The task of the democratic community should be to secure and develop Georgia as an oasis of democratic stability. For this, all healthy forces inside and outside the country should be united”, he said.
The official emphasised the importance of “strengthening democracy and the rule of law” in Georgia and “preventing the spread of war and violence” in his remarks to lawmakers.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday told the legislative body “disinformation” had become the “main tool for deepening polarisation in the country’s domestic politics, weakening state institutions and damaging foreign policy goals”.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said the country’s Government had managed to secure the “historic” achievement of receiving the European Union membership candidate status last year “without harming the country's interests, weakening democracy or shrinking the economy”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday said “everything should be done” so that Georgia could “move to a new stage” on European integration - opening accession talks with the European Union by the end of the year.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Wednesday pledged to continue working towards getting Georgia “much closer” to NATO and said it was “fundamentally” important to deepen the partnership with the Alliance.
The Georgian Parliamentary delegation, led by Irakli Beraia, the Chair of the legislative body’s Defence and Security Committee, on Wednesday participated in the meeting of the Georgia-NATO Interparliamentary Council, the Parliament press office said.
Ladies and Gentlemen, my today’s speech is my last report as a Speaker of the Parliament before the 2024 parliamentary elections. This is why, in addition to presenting 2023 report, I will use this opportunity to summarise the processes developed around and with participation of current convocation of Parliament that was full of political and historic developments.
Georgian Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili on Friday said the Government was ready to “take all necessary steps” to elevate its trade and investment partnership with the United States and its business community to a “new level”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said a “fair and constructive” approach was helping develop relations between Georgia and the European Union, noting the decision of the European Council to grant the country the bloc’s membership candidate status last year had “positively” affected the deepening of the ties.
Paweł Herczyński, the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, on Friday said it was “really impressive” that the Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze had selected Brussels as the destination of his first foreign visit this week.