The European Council on Thursday officially bestowed candidate status for European Union membership upon Georgia, a decision that follows last month’s positive recommendation from the European Commission.
European Council President Charles Michel also revealed plans to commence accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, both members of the Associated Trio, while emphasizing that talks with Bosnia and Herzegovina would initiate “once the necessary degree of compliance with membership criteria is reached.”
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, hailed the moment, stating, “Today, we take a historic step towards a stronger European family by opening negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, granting candidate status to Georgia, and initiating negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the required level of compliance with membership criteria is achieved.”
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili expressed gratitude to the EU and its leaders for “acknowledging Georgia’s civilizational choice” and affirmed, “We remain dedicated and eagerly look forward to advancing on our European integration path.”
President Salome Zourabichvili deemed the decision a “monumental milestone” for Georgia and “our European family,” highlighting “the unwavering will of the Georgian people” that led to the attainment of the status.
Describing the day as “historic,” the diplomatic mission of the EU and member states released a joint video with the message “congratulations Georgia,” featuring each diplomat speaking in their mother tongue.
Georgian opposition leaders also characterized the day as “historic” and attributed the achievement to the Georgian people rather than the government’s efforts.
To mark the occasion, the Tbilisi tower and the peace bridge are now illuminated in the colors of the EU.
Georgia officially submitted its application for EU membership in March 2022, a move accelerated by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, well ahead of the initially planned date in 2024. Tbilisi was granted a European perspective in June 2022, while Ukraine and Moldova achieved candidacy, a decision described by Tbilisi as “historic” but “not merit-based.”
