FM: Georgian Dream's efforts secured visa-free EU access for citizens

Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili on Wednesday dismissed as false the opposition's assertions that the procedures for the implementation of the visa-free travel with the European Union began during the United National Movement's time in power.

In her interview with Imedi TV, Botchorishvili noted that she had personally witnessed the entire process, stressing that it was under the leadership of the Georgian Dream Government that Georgian citizens were granted the opportunity to travel visa-free to European Union countries.

“I remember very well when the EU Commissioner arrived in February 2013 and brought the action plan that the Georgian Government worked on for several years, leading to the eventual implementation of visa free travel”, the FM said.

She further responded to accusations from “radical opposition groups” alleging that simplifying the procedure for suspending the visa free travel was in the interest of the ruling party and aimed to distance Georgia from the European Union.

“The Georgian Dream is the Government that did everything to ensure that Georgian citizens could travel to EU countries without a visa. I was directly involved in this process from the very beginning - since the visa dialogue with the EU started - and I witnessed every stage. I vividly recall how politically difficult some of the required reforms were for the Government, yet how unanimously they were carried out and how political decisions were made”, Botchorishvili said.

“This wasn’t done by the bureaucracy - it was a political decision backed by strong political will. Our aim was to deliver visa free travel to our citizens, and we succeeded”, she concluded.