European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos expressed hope that the Georgian government will return to the European path. She said this in response to a journalist's question before the start of the EU Foreign Ministers' meeting.
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On 18–19 December, a meeting of the European Council will take place in Brussels, with EU enlargement on the agenda. When asked what to expect from the meeting about Georgia, Marta Kos said that she could not comment in advance, as the conclusions would be adopted during the Council session. Referring to the Enlargement Report, including its recommendations and conclusions, she stated:
“In this report, we say that Georgia is backsliding — as no other country. We expect that, if the country wants to move further on the European path, it has to do it differently; this is for the government.
Of course, we will further support civil society and independent media, because this is very important not only to give hope to the people, but also to tell the government that it is not right if they do not consider what the people want.
Speaking about Georgia, I really hope that, with the support of its people, the Georgian authorities and the government will come back onto the European path. But, of course, it is in their hands.”
The annual Enlargement Package report states that Georgia's candidate status exists only on paper. It reports “serious democratic backsliding” across all key areas, including the enactment of repressive laws, politicisation of the judiciary, persecution of opposition figures, arrests of demonstrators and journalists, and restrictions on civic space.
On 4 November, during the presentation of the enlargement report, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, stated that “Georgia has no viable path to the EU at this stage unless conditions change dramatically.”
