France supports the legitimate European aspirations of the Georgian people, which the Georgian Dream has betrayed, - French Minister for European Affairs Benjamin Haddad said in response to a question from Euroscope before the General Affairs Council meeting.­

"Ukraine and Moldova are moving forward on the path to EU membership. Unfortunately, today Georgia is lagging behind them. This is due to the repression against the Georgian Dream, civil society and the opposition, and the illiberal steps taken by the government. We call on the Georgian Dream to stop the repression, release political prisoners, and repeal the "Foreign Agents" legislation, which restricts the right to expression in Georgia. France supports the legitimate European aspirations of the Georgian people, which the Georgian Dream has betrayed. If it wants to return to the EU path, it knows what to do,” said Benjamin Haddadi.

Haddad also answered a question about the EU’s imposition of targeted sanctions.

“Today, Georgia is a candidate country, but this candidate status is de facto frozen. It cannot move forward as long as the Georgian Dream continues its repression. We have the tools. The visa issue is being discussed by the member states of the Council of Europe. Targeted sanctions, namely visa restrictions, have been imposed on those individuals who are involved in the repression. This is something we can go further with together with our European partners,” noted the French Minister for European Affairs.