EU urges Georgia's government to stick with democratic path to EU membership
The European Union is urging Georgia's government to stick to the path of democratic reform to join the bloc, as the parliament is set to approve a bill that would tighten control on organisations receiving foreign funds. Protesters have gathered in front of the parliament building on Monday to protest against the socalled "Russian law," which is widely seen as Kremlin-type legislation aimed at stifling free speech.
“Georgia after all is a candidate country, we hope, we expect, and we call on the authorities to go back on the European path and deliver on all the commitments they took upon themselves voluntarily when they applied for candidate status for their country,”
European Commission spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Peter Stano, said on Monday. Several MEPs have asked EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell to impose sanctions against Georgia's government. The European Commission has also condemned Tbilisi for using brutal force against opposition politicians and journalists.
“It's now time for the EU to say enough of these double games," John O'Brennan, Professor of European Politics at Ireland's Maynooth University and Jean Monnet Chair of European Integration, told Euronews.
“You can't be part of the accession process and at the same time introduce legislation which is completely at odds with Article 2 of the treaty of the European Union; completely at odds with the undertaking that the Georgian government has given to the European Commission,” O'Brennan added.
The divisive draft law, reintroduced by the ruling Georgian Dream party, requires media and noncommercial organisations to register as being under the foreign influence if they receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad.