European Parliament's AFET Delegation to Visit Ukraine and Georgia

Elmar Brok, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) at the European Parliament (EP) will lead an ad hoc delegation of the committee to Ukraine and Georgia.

He will be joined by other members of the AFET committee, representing different parties: Andrej Plenkovic (EPP, Croatia), Chair of the Delegation for Relations with Ukraine, Sandra Kalniete (EPP, Latvia), Gabrielius Landsbergis (EPP, Lithaunia), Richard Howitt (S&D, UK), Andrejs Mamikins (S&D, Latvia), Marek Jurek (ECR, Poland) and Paavo Vayrynen (ALDE, Finland).

In Kiev, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are scheduled to meet with the political leaders of Ukraine, including the President, Prime Minister and members of the government. They will also meet with their counterparts in Verkhovna Rada, Parliament of Ukraine, including its Speaker and other key members. The MEPs will speak with representatives of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Ukraine, as well as with those of the EU Advisory Mission for Civilian Security Sector Reform  Ukraine (EUAM). The ad hoc delegation will be joined by members of the Human Rights Subcomittee delegation in Kiev.

On July 26-27, the delegation members have scheduled meetings in Tbilisi with the President of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, the Prime Minister, Irakli Garibashvili, representatives of ministries of foreign affairs and justice, and representatives of the Parliament of Georgia. The MEPs are also set to meet with the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM) in Gori, and visit the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL), where Russian troops placed border markers deep into Georgian territory earlier this month.

The European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs is a key player in the design and implementation of the EU's foreign policy. It decides on the way European funds are used to promote the EU's interests and values abroad and supervises the Enlargement process to define the future shape of the Union.

The visit of AFET Committee members follows that of Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, who paid a two-day visit to Georgia, on July 20-21.

Nino Japarashvili