The European Union is considering the cancellation of visa-free regime with Georgia due to the ‘decline of democracy’ in the country, Politico reported citing a European Commission spokesman.
The European Commission representative told Politico that Brussels is discussing ‘all options, including the possible temporary abolition of visa liberalisation’. According to him, the Georgian authorities for further integration into the EU must fulfil certain requirements, among which are ensuring the protection of citizens’ rights and combating discrimination.
‘The necessary assessment will be made in case of such a development, which would pose a risk to the internal security of the Schengen zone, as well as in case of further decline of democracy in Georgia,’ he stressed.
For his part, EU Ambassador to Georgia Pavel Gerchinsky said that the EU at the highest level of presidents and prime ministers expressed concern about the trajectories of the developing events in Georgia.
‘Instead of reforms that will bring Georgia closer to the EU, unfortunately there have been several developments in recent months that increase the distance between Georgia and the EU. We have discussed this within [the union], our members have discussed this, and we clearly said months ago that all options are on the table, including the temporary suspension of visa-free regime with Georgia,’ he said at a briefing.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Western ideas of a new world order hypocrisy. According to him, they are aimed solely at preserving the neo-colonial system, showing their essence in the form of ‘hypocrisy, double standards and claims’.
