Georgian accuses Ukraine of obstructing Tbilisi's EU bid
Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili has claimed that Georgia's path towards integration with the European Union has been accompanied by a negative stance from Ukraine aimed at preventing Tbilisi from obtaining candidate status.
"We have witnessed firsthand the campaigns carried out in 2022-2023, before we obtained candidate status. Ukraine's involvement in this was evident more than once, and it is clear that they have opposed Georgia's European integration through various means. This was not hidden; we all know it," Bochorishvili said, as quoted by Gruzia Online, a Russian-language news outlet covering Georgia.
Bochorishvili said that Georgia has done everything it could to show its political support for Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale aggression.
The foreign minister also criticised the negative assessment of Georgia in the European Commission's Enlargement Report and claimed that "the conclusions in the European Commission's report completely distort the real facts".
She also offered a justification for Georgia's refusal to impose sanctions on Russia.
"No one wants to enter into confrontation with Russia and create additional security challenges. This is entirely understandable. The government's prime duty is to protect the country from threats. This is our obligation, and if we fulfil it, it should not be condemned but rather welcomed," she added.
Among candidate countries, Georgia has faced the sharpest criticism in the European Commission's package of enlargement reports. Marta Kos, European Commissioner for Enlargement, said that Georgia is currently a candidate for EU membership "in name only".
EU Ambassador to Georgia Paweł Herczyński stated that the Commission's report should be a "wake-up call for the Georgian authorities".
In response, Georgia's Foreign Ministry claimed that the EU enlargement report is being used "to voice unfounded negative assessments of Georgia and for further political speculation".
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