EU to warn Georgia of stalled European integration, media

The highest body of the European Union plans to reiterate that the current course of the Georgian government is hindering the country’s European integration and will call on it to implement democratic reforms.

This information comes from the working document of the upcoming European Council meeting, which Radio Liberty has reviewed.

“The European Council reiterates that not changing the current course of action endangers Georgia’s European path; in fact, it halts it. The Council calls on Georgia to implement democratic, comprehensive, and sustainable reforms in line with the core principles of European integration,” the document states.

The European Council brings together the heads of European member states and governments, who meet four times a year to define the main directions of EU policy.

The next meeting of the European Council will be held in Brussels on October 17 and 18. European leaders will vote on the document, which was prepared in advance by the Secretariat of the Council of the European Union and which RFE/RL has seen.

“The European Council reiterates its serious concerns regarding the course of the Georgian government, which goes against the founding values and principles of the European Union,” the document adds.

The working document includes two additional references to Georgia. The first states that the EU expects the October 26 parliamentary elections to be held in a “free and fair” environment, while the second emphasizes the EU’s “unwavering support” for Georgia’s territorial integrity.

On October 4, EU Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski said that EU institutions had ceased meeting with representatives of the Georgian government. In July, the EU halted the disbursement of 30 million euros in aid intended to strengthen Georgia’s defense.
These and other possible measures were discussed in the European Commission’s working document, which RFE/RL reviewed in June.

According to this document, the European Union is considering suspending the visa-free regime for Georgian citizens as an extreme measure.

“It is truly heartbreaking to see that Georgia’s integration into the European Union is practically halted, practically frozen, while we are moving forward with Ukraine and Moldova,” Pawel Herczynski said in June after “Georgian Dream” passed the foreign transparency law.