“The Eastern Partnership countries have obviously chosen the European path, so we cannot close the door on them. It is particularly important that Georgia should be granted a visa-free regime promptly, as the country has fulfilled all the criteria,” said Linkevičius in the discussion at the European Policy Centre.
According to Lithuania’s Foreign Minister, the Eastern partners must see tangible benefits in cooperation with the EU, so that they would remain confident in the European Union.
Lithuania’s Foreign Minister also called for giving Eastern partners a European perspective, which, according to him, is not an EU membership, just a direction of politics.
“Having signed the Association Agreements/DCFTAs with Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, the EU already acknowledged that its Eastern partners proceeded along the path to the EU and this is undeniable. This just needs to be acknowledged publicly and clearly,” said Lithuania’s Foreign Minister.
According to Linkevičius, the partners have to choose the depth of their dialogue with the EU – they must make their own choice.
The Georgian Foreign Minister expressed his regret that in spite of the firm decision to follow the European path and the fulfilment of all the EU’s requirements, Georgia’s visa-free access to EU was delayed. According to Janelidze, the success in achieving visa-free travel for his country was especially important in order to give meaning to the ongoing reforms and to build credibility of the EU with Georgia’s citizens.
Janelidze also noted that Georgia, as a European country, had chosen the path towards a free Europe after declaring its independence. Georgia’s situation has been stable in recent years and progress has been achieved in many areas. This leads to democracy as a consequence of Georgia’s becoming an associate member of the EU.
The participants also discussed the outcome of the United Kingdom referendum and the Dutch referendum for the Eastern partners, prospects for signing the free trade agreements and cooperation between NATO and Georgia.
On 4 October, Lithuania’s Foreign Minister will hold a meeting with the Vice-President of the European Commission, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini.
