Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili attended this year’s Europalia biennial multidisciplinary arts festival in Brussels, where he emphasized that his Government will “do everything” in its power to “regain” Geogia’s place among European nations.
Garibashvili said his Government’s efforts are aimed at joining the European Union, representing the fulfillment of the “dream of many generations” for a Georgia firmly within Europe. He further vowed to implement “all” priorities outlined by the EU for granting the country the status and stressed that Georgia never will deviate from a “democratic, European and prosperous future.”
The Prime Minister described the “historic” accomplishments toward European integration over the past decade. These include signing the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area deal with the EU in 2014, agreeing on visa-free travel with the bloc, and “becoming one of the leaders” among the countries aspiring to join it.
Both the EU and the Georgian Government understand the significance of Georgia attaining its rightful Candidate Status by the end of the year. Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia Pawel Herczynski echoed this by saying it is essential that the Government implement as much progress as possible on completing the 12 recommendations for EU Candidacy Status. He added that he believes Georgia should receive the status for its efforts.
Irakli Kobakhidze, chairman of the Georgian Dream party, has said that the Georgian Government will complete the 12 recommendations by the end of June to “clearly fulfill our promise to the Georgian society and the European Commission.”