Georgia’s absence from key EU events reflects widening gap, Ambassador Herczyński

The European Union’s Ambassador to Georgia, Paweł Herczyński, on Friday expressed concern over Georgia’s “growing distance” from the EU, citing the country’s absence from major EU events as a “clear indicator of a widening gap” between Tbilisi and Brussels.

Speaking to local media on Europe Day, Herczyński said that Georgia was not invited to an informal meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Warsaw, where all other candidate countries for EU membership were present. He also noted neither the current Georgian government nor the former administration had received personal invitations to the Europe day celebrations organized by the embassy.

“This is an open event. We invited everyone, and you could see the campaign, including posters on social media, so I hope a lot of people will come. But we have not extended personal invitations to either the current or former government,” Herczyński explained.

Herczyński attributed Georgia’s exclusion from key EU gatherings to the actions of the Georgian government over the past year, which he believed had placed the country on a divergent path from the European Union.

“I am sorry, but this is the reality that more and more important events are being held, including on EU enlargement, where Georgia is not. This is extremely sad. The distance between Georgia and the EU is growing, and Georgia risks missing a historic opportunity,” he warned.

The ambassador stressed that Georgia must implement significant reforms to align with EU standards, “a requirement for any country aspiring to EU membership.” However, he expressed disappointment over the lack of “visible progress” since Georgia received candidate status in 2023.

“Unfortunately, since the moment of granting Georgia candidate status, we have not seen any genuine desire for Georgia to become one of our members as soon as possible,” Herczyński added.

The EU Ambassador also highlighted ongoing concerns about human rights in Georgia, including the “illegal detention of individuals.” He indicated that the EU was exploring sanctions against officials responsible for rights violations.