EU Structures Reach Political Agreement over Georgia’s Visa Liberalization

BRUSSELS - The European Parliament and the Council of Europe reached a political agreement on Tuesday over Georgia’s visa liberalization with the EU, reports the official Twitter page of Slovakia, which is holding the Presidency of the Council of Europe.

“Good news for Georgians: The Council of Europe and EU Parliament have reached political agreement on Georgia’s visa liberalization. The EU Council is the next step,” the statement reads.

The political agreement came after the trialogue of the European Parliament, European Council and European Commission in Brussels, Belgium. This was the first tripartite meeting on Georgia’s visa liberalization involving all the European Union (EU) structures.

After this, Georgia-EU visa-free travel will be discussed in the Council of Europe by the Committee of the Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member States to the EU (Coreper).

Mariya Gabriel, European Parliament Member and a rapporteur of Georgia’s visa liberalization, also shared the news on her official Twitter account: “We achieved a political agreement with the European Council on the issue of visa liberalization for Georgia. The shared commitment must be fulfilled as soon as possible,” her post reads.

Georgia’s Prime Minister, Giorgi Kvirikashvili also made a comment and thanked Mariya Gabriel for her work in the process: "Good news from the European Parliament on Georgia’s visa liberalization. Special thanks to the European Parliament's rapporteur Mariya Gabriel for the great work," Kvirikashvili tweeted.

Georgia’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the step forward in Georgia’s visa liberalization process and expressed hope the whole process will be completed soon.

First Deputy Foreign Minister, Davit Zalkaliani explains that the issue is at the final stage and says it is very important the EU structures reached this agreement during the very first trialogue.

He adds that the next step is discussions at the Coreper and at the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE). After this the issue will be returned to the European Parliament, which will make the final decision.

“We hope the European Parliament will vote and approve the issue in the next session. After this the EU Council Ministers will formally approve the issue. The President of the European Union and the Presidency country will sign the amendment and it will be published in the journal,” said Zalkaliani.

The visa-free regime between Georgia and the EU will go into force as soon as the suspension mechanism is activated. When the process is complete, Georgian citizens will be able to enter the EU visa-free for 90 days in any 180-day period.

By Thea Morrison