Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said that Warsaw linked the granting of candidate status to Georgia for European Union (EU) membership to the solution of the former President Mikheil Saakashvili issue. This was reported by RIA News.
“If we are talking about improving the state of Georgian democracy, for example, if we are talking about the rule of law, then Georgia has made significant progress here. But we have some expectations regarding Georgia, especially when it comes to some political issues, such as the future and fate of former President Mikheil Saakashvili, his health situation,” Rau said at a conference on EU enlargement in Berlin.
He emphasized that Georgia “needs to fix some things.” Still, Rau expressed confidence that Tbilisi deserves “a warm welcome in the European family.”
Former Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili statedHe said that if the country did not receive candidate status for EU membership, it would be a strategic mistake on the part of the EU and an insult to the Georgian people.
Archil Talakvadze, formerly Member of the Georgian Dream Party, Deputy Speaker of the Georgian Parliament statedHe said that Georgia has gained the status of a candidate country to join the European Union (EU) “in all respects”.
Previously In Georgia, they called for Saakashvili’s pardon.