Georgian Foreign Minister reaffirms commitment to EU integration

Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili on Tuesday rejected claims that Georgia had suspended its European integration process, emphasising that it remained the main priority of the country’s foreign policy.

In her remarks, Botchorishvili accused European partners of using the integration process as a political tool and spreading disinformation about Georgia’s commitment.

“When we talk about the relationship between the European Union and Georgia, recently, statements claiming that Georgia has suspended the European integration process are being used in a disinformation campaign, which is absolute manipulation. Georgia has not suspended the European integration process. The discussion pertains to the EU membership process and subsequent negotiations, decisions about which must be made by the EU side. Therefore, using this issue in such a way is complete disinformation and manipulation”, the Minister said.

She highlighted a pattern where Georgia was excluded from EU events, only for this to be used to falsely suggest non-participation.

“Regarding specific invitations, we see that events planned within the framework of the European Union are being used with the sole purpose of shaping the agenda in relation to Georgia. They do not invite Georgian representatives to these events and then manipulatively spread information suggesting that Georgia is not participating in them. Georgia has in no way suspended the European integration process; European integration is the main direction of our foreign policy, and on the contrary, we see attempts by our European partners to use the European integration process as a political instrument”, she concluded.