US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan Wednesday said the Georgian government can move very quickly when it wants to pass legislation.
“We’ve seen that in the expedited legislation last December to abolish the State Inspector Service; you saw it most recently with the expedited legislation on expanding surveillance capacity. So, we know the government can move quickly when it wants to,” she went on.
US Ambassador believes people of Georgia want these reforms to move through quickly so that Georgia can be ready European Union membership status.
“And we know the people of Georgia want these reforms to move through quickly so that Georgia can be ready European Union membership status. The United States stands ready and willing to help in any way to with this process. The next six months will be an important opportunity to get started. There’s no time to waste and there have been many other stakeholders: the people, civil society, opposition parties, and some members of the government as well, who are standing ready to get started on these recommendations. Everyone wants to see a very positive report for Georgia by the end of the year-before that, if possible, but by December most certainly,” she asserted.
Asked about the ship with sanctioned cargo in Batumi, Ambassador Degnan deemed it “very concerning,” saying “the government takes it seriously that we monitor very carefully for any attempts at sanctions evasion, and we will continue to do so.”
“We are certainly studying this issue. This is very concerning, and we are tracking this kind of activity everywhere. We are working with the government agencies, Customs and Revenue Service, the, the Ministry (of Economy). We have had very good cooperation on following up on reports like this. It is very important, and I know the government takes it seriously that we monitor very carefully for any attempts at sanctions evasion, and we will continue to do so,” she stated.
