Ilia Darchiashvili: We expect that the European Commission will fairly assess Georgia's progress and issue a recommendation on granting the country candidate status in the fall

We expect that the European Commission will fairly and on the basis of the principle of merit evaluate Georgia's progress in terms of fulfilling 12 priorities and in the fall, when evaluating the enlargement package, will issue a recommendation on granting the country the status of a candidate, said the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Ilia Darchiashvili, during his speech in the Parliament, within the framework of the "Minister's Hour" format.

The Minister also spoke about the decision made by the European Council on June 23, 2022, as a result of which Georgia was given a European perspective and on the basis of which Georgia moved from the neighborhood policy to the ranks of enlargement countries. In addition, he spoke at length about the process of fulfilling the 12 priorities defined by the European Commission for granting candidate status and the steps taken in this direction. In this context, the Minister explained that on the initiative and coordination of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, an interdepartmental working group was created in 2022 with the participation of experts involved in the integration process - consisting of representatives of the Cabinet of the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, sectoral ministries, Government Administration - which regularly holds working meetings in European institutions, as well as member states, and the legislative and executive bodies in the capitals.

"Granting the candidate status to Georgia, which our country deserved last year and it fully met the prerequisites for this decision, will be another historic decision that will formally strengthen the position of our country on the path to joining the European Union, will promote depolarization within the country, and will be an important determining factor for peace and in terms of strengthening stability," Ilia Darchiashvili said, adding that Georgia has been and continues to be a leading reformer country in the Eastern neighborhood of the European Union in the last decade and is significantly ahead of the EU requirements in terms of both legislative and institutional convergence.

According to him, Georgia continues to move steadily towards joining the European Union and takes steps to achieve maximum harmonization with the European Union legislation and a high level of institutional integration.

As he noted, Georgia continues to successfully implement the Association Agreement and at this stage, has fulfilled approximately 50% of the obligations of the agreement (and more than 60% of the DCFTA obligations). As Darchiashili said, the degree of legislative and institutional rapprochement of Georgia is positively assessed by the European Commission.

During his speech, Ilia Darchiashvili paid particular attention to the importance of the support of the international community on the path of integration into the European Union.

"The clear and direct support for the European future of Georgia, which can be seen in the public speeches and bilateral meetings of high-ranking officials of the EU institutions and member states, is particularly noteworthy," the Minister said.

According to him, it is necessary to emphasize the unwavering support of the European Parliament for the independence and territorial integrity of Georgia within the internationally recognized borders, "as well as for the European future of our country, which, with the efforts of the Georgian side and the support of our European partners, is reflected in many resolutions of the European Parliament".