Opposition to Support Georgian Dream Resolution on Georgia's EU Integration
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Thursday, March 3, 2022
The Georgian Parliament's draft resolution on EU integration, submitted by the Georgian Dream, calls on the Georgian executive to step up efforts towards Georgia's European integration and to implement the Association Agreement between Georgia and the EU, in preparation for Georgia's EU membership.
At the same time, according to the 13-point draft resolution, the Parliament of Georgia calls on the EU member states and EU institutions to take all necessary steps to accelerate Georgia's accession to the European Union in accordance with Article 49 of the EU Treaty, in accordance with the European perspective.
The resolution is guided by the unwavering will of the citizens of Georgia to integrate into European and Euro-Atlantic structures, by the historic choice set forth in Article 78 of the Constitution of Georgia, which stipulates "all necessary steps to ensure Georgia's full integration into the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization" and considers the aspiration of the citizens of Georgia to make Georgia, as an integral part of European civilization and a bearer of European values, a full member of the EU.
According to Georgian Dream MP Sozar Subari, a draft resolution on Georgia's EU integration has been prepared for a long time, work on it has been underway so far, and ‘now there is a situation when the process can be lobbied in an accelerated manner’.
“Against the background of Russian aggression in Ukraine, we are receiving signals from Europe. The resolution on accelerating EU membership is a response to these signals. We want to hear the voice of the Georgian people,” Nikoloz Samkharadze, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, told reporters.
The opposition will be actively involved in the discussion of the resolution and they do not rule out that they will support it. Opponents of the ruling team believe that it is important to get the document on time so that Georgia is not left out of the game.
Paata Manjgaladze, a member of the “Strategy Builder” party said that it is absolutely possible to adopt a resolution of the Georgian Dream by consensus, however this should happen in an expedited manner and not after two weeks. Teona Akubardia, a member of the parliamentary Reform Group and Levan Ioseliani, the leader of “Citizens” have expressed similar positions.
According to Manjgaladze, ALDE (The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe), at the initiative of “Strategy Builder”, “Republican Party” and “Free Democrats,” supported Georgia's quick accession to the European Union with a resolution, and now it is important for the “National Movement” to work with its partner “People's Party” and” Georgian Dream” with the “Social Democrats”, which will increase the support of the European Parliament on this issue.
Lelo MP Salome Samadashvili assessed the draft resolution submitted by the majority without consulting the opposition as ‘weak’, since it doesn’t say ‘anything new’ in the background of the new political situation, doesn’t outline clear political positions nor issues clear instructions towards the executive branch. According to her, it is good if it is adopted by the parliament, but resolution alone will not be enough to use the window of opportunity for EU integration and Georgia.
“Another paradox I want the public to notice is that the text of the resolution talks about sanction, related to the occupied territories of Georgia - asking the West to strengthen the sanctions regime among them, and on the other hand you have a PM who says that no sanctions make sense and therefore Georgia won’t join, this is an example of why the current government's position is absurd.”
Previous day, the European Parliament passed a resolution in support of Ukraine. According to the text of the document, the European Parliament condemns the actions of Russia and Belarus in Ukraine and calls on the EU to tighten sanctions.
At the same time, in a recently adopted resolution the European Parliament called on the EU institutions to start working for Ukraine to receive the status of a candidate country for EU membership and to continue working towards the country's European integration under the Association Agreement. The resolution was adopted by the European Parliament by 676 votes to 13.
Ukraine, in parallel with the talks with the Russian side in Belarus on February 28, formally applied to the European Union for the status of a candidate country.
