German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledged assistance to Georgia in its drive to join the European Union during a visit to Tiflis on Friday but called for further reforms in moving towards democratic standards and freedom of the press.
“The door to EU candidate status is wide open. The remaining 12 steps have yet to be taken,” Baerbock said following talks with Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili.
Baerbock noted with approval Georgia’s votes backing UN resolutions condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Georgia shares a long border with Russia. Moscow has attempted to influence politics in its southern neighbour.
Following the withdrawal earlier this month by the government of a controversial law that would have required organizations receiving foreign funding to register as foreign agents, the government now had the task of “overcoming polarization, restoring confidence and decisively taking pending steps towards reform,” Baerbock said.
Protesters took to the streets to halt the bill, which was seen as a “Russian law” aimed at curbing the influence of Western non-governmental organizations.
Darchiashvili said it was the “unshakeable will of the Georgian people” to join the EU and the government was working hard to fulfill 12 criteria laid down by the EU Commission.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU awarded candidate status to Ukraine and its western neighbour Moldova in June last year. But it said that Georgia needed to fulfill certain conditions before receiving similar status.
The EU is calling for political polarization to be curbed, reforms to the judicial system, the establishment of an anti-corruption authority, greater media freedom, and for the power of oligarchs to be restricted. The commission is to present a report on the situation in October.
