The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, expressed concerns over Georgia’s current political developments, stating that the country is not moving in the right direction for EU candidate countries.
Speaking before the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, Kallas emphasized the European Union’s focus on addressing the Georgian government’s actions against opposition figures.
“All developments that we are seeing right now in Georgia not going in the right direction, where the candidate countries should be. So, we are going to discuss the consequences for the Georgian government that is using repressions on the opposition and all the tools that they are using there. So what can we do on the European side? One question is, of course, sanctions and the other is also limiting the visa-free regime,” she said.
Kallas noted that consensus among the 27 EU member states is crucial for these measures, and discussions are ongoing.
“We have had those discussions, and of course, we are 27 democracies with their own ideas, so it takes time. But we have proposed a list for these people, sanctions for these people who are opposing or using force and violence against the opposition.
We are also discussing the visa-free regime, how do we limit that. There are the member states also willing to task the commission to come up with that proposal.
First of all, this list has already been proposed, so we are discussing this list, but everybody needs to agree to the list, and we are not there yet,” she stated.
On the topic of Georgia’s presidential elections, Kallas was asked about the EU’s stance on Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili. She stated, “The president remains in office until December 29, and a lot could happen in between".
