Margvelashvili Meets President of European Council

President of the European Council Donald Tusk said after meeting Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili in Brussels on May 12 that it was agreed to “redouble efforts” to successfully finalize EU visa liberalisation with Georgia “as soon as feasible.”

Echoing report of the European Commission, assessing Georgia’s implementation of visa liberalisation action plan, Tusk said that the country made a “significant progress”, but some steps are still remaining.
 
In a joint letter to the EU, including to the European Council President, on May 5, Georgian President Margvelashvili, PM Irakli Garibashvili and Parliament Chairman Davit Usupashvili called on the EU to make an “unambiguous endorsement of visa-free regime” with Georgia at the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga on May 21-22. But the European Commission said in its report on May 8 that despite of significant progress, Georgia “still needs to address the remaining recommendations” in the visa liberalization action plan.

The European Commission said that it will report on Georgia’s further progress on implementation of the visa liberalisation action plan by the end of 2015. But it also said that “in view of the significant progress Georgia has made in the past few months, the Commission is ready to bring forward the timing of the next report provided that the rapid progress… continues.”

Speaking after meeting with President Margvelashvili on May 11 in Brussels, EU commissioner for neighborhood policy and enlargement negotiations Johannes Hahn said that the European Commission’s report was “very positive.”

“If few outstanding… issues are resolved, I would not exclude that very soon a very positive final report could be there,” Hahn said.

President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, said after meeting President Margvelashvili on May 12 that Georgia is “a close partner of the European Union.”

“With the Eastern Partnership Summit in Riga just around the corner our meeting was well-timed. I assured President Margvelashvili that the Riga Summit will reaffirm the European Union’s strong commitment to the Eastern Partnership and the objective of developing strengthened, closer, and differentiated relations between the EU and its sovereign, independent Eastern partner states,” Tusk said.

He also said that “smooth” implementation of the Association Agreement and deep and comprehensive free trade treaty with the EU should be another priority.

“For the Georgian government the time is now ripe to drive forward necessary reforms while maintaining a close dialogue with the citizens to ensure long-term public support for the process,” Tusk said.