All news
EU leaders announce 'effective halt' of Georgia's inclusion in bloc
The Georgian government's actions are jeopardizing the country's "European path" and halting its accession process to the European Union, EU leaders say. The EU suspended the accession process after the adoption of the Foreign Agents Law.
The European Union is ready to support Georgia's "European path", but the actions of the Georgian government are of concern to the EU, as they contradict the EU's values and principles. This is stated in a statement by EU leaders after the summit in Brussels.
"The Council of Europe recalls that these measures jeopardize Georgia's path to Europe and effectively halt the accession process. It calls on Georgia to implement democratic, comprehensive and sustainable reforms in line with the fundamental principles of European integration," the document says.
EU leaders also called on Georgia to hold free and fair parliamentary elections (which will take place in Georgia on October 26).
Georgia followed Ukraine and Moldova in applying for EU membership in 2022. The latter was granted candidate status for EU membership, but Georgia failed to become an EU member. Relations between Tbilisi and Brussels worsened after the Georgian government adopted a law on foreign agents. The EU suspended Georgia's accession process and froze part of its financial support to the republic.
Josep Borrell, the European Union's top diplomat, said that if the Georgian government continues on its current course, "the door to the European Union will be closed." The United States has imposed sanctions on Georgian figures it believes are involved in human rights abuses. Among them were Interior Ministry officials, leading Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili to call the sanctions "an attack on the state."
In September 2024, the Georgian legislature passed a law banning LGBT people.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has criticized the government's actions and promised to return Georgia to the "European path." She has announced her intention to run for a second term.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has said he has no plans to remove provisions on EU and NATO aspirations from Georgia’s constitution even if the ruling Georgian Dream party wins the election. Last August, he said: “I am not talking about removing Article 78 of the Constitution or changing this article, I am talking about something else, and I will talk about it later, when the relevant consultations are successfully completed.”