The European Parliament Member Andrius Kubilius responded to the ruling Georgian Dream chairman Irakli Garibashvili statement that Georgia is not ready to join the European Union at this stage.
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“In December, Garibashvili celebrated Georgia’s EU candidate status, calling it a victory. 4 months later, he says Georgia is not ready. Who exactly is not ready: the Georgian people or the GD party? Answer is clear-GD is pushing Russian-style laws, while pro-European people protest in the streets,” Kubilius wrote on X.
Speaking about the Russian Law, former Prime Minister and current chairman of Georgian Dream, Irakli Garibashvili, told journalists that today Georgia is not ready to become a member of the European Union.
"We are talking about the fact that with the adoption of this law, something can change and there will be an obstacle. First of all, the country reached its maximum, the peak was last year, in December, we became a candidate country. The next step is to join. Today, the country is not ready to become a member country, do you agree? There is no consensus that the country can become a member of the European Union today, especially since there are so many problems and it will take a long time. Today, the EU is not ready for enlargement, and it will take time. The next steps depend on many factors.
It's very simple, I want to tell you. If by the time the country is ready and they tell us that tomorrow you will become a member of the European Union, this law can be canceled, revised, changed, a new one adopted very easily. So, don't worry, everything is very well," said Irakli Garibashvili and added that "transparency is necessary."
On April 17, despite the people's protests and the calls from the United States of America and the European Union, Georgian Dream passed the draft law restricting independent media and civil society with 83 votes in the first reading.
The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, issued a statement saying that the final adoption of the law would negatively affect Georgia's progress on the EU path. According to them, the law does not comply with the basic norms and values of the European Union.
President of the European Council Charles Michel also responded to the Russian law. He said that the Georgian people chose the European path, and in response, Georgia received the status of a candidate, and the draft law on the "transparency of foreign influence" does not correspond to the European aspirations of the country; it separates Georgia from the European Union.
The Russian law contradicts the 1st and 9th recommendations defined by the European Commission for Georgia, according to which, in order to open accession negotiations, the authorities must ensure the free functioning of civil society in the country and fight disinformation against the European Union and its values.
A similar bill was supported by the ruling party in the first reading in March of last year, but people's protests forced it to be rejected. The leaders of the party promised that they would withdraw the bill "unconditionally, without any reservations"; however, a year later, in early April, they initiated it again. The text of the draft law remained the same - only "agent of foreign influence" was replaced by the term "organization serving the interests of a foreign power."
