In the opening remarks, Lithuania’s Foreign Minister underlined that Georgia had achieved impressive results since the Commission’s last meeting in April 2016 – the EU-Georgia Association Agreement entered into force on 1 July 2016, while the citizens of Georgia were granted visa-free travel to the Schengen area on 28 March 2017.
“I am glad that Georgia keeps moving forward on the path towards European integration. I wish you to maintain the pace of reforms and fear not to set new goals, as well as engrain democracy in Georgia,” said Lithuania’s Foreign Minister during the meeting.
When speaking about Georgia’s aspirations to join NATO, Linkevičius stressed that the accession of Montenegro to NATO on 5 June demonstrated the Alliance’s commitment to the open door policy.
“Undoubtedly, time will also come for Georgia’s NATO membership, so Georgia must be fully prepared for this. It is important to continue to strengthen and deepen cooperation between NATO and Georgia, and to make use of all available practical tools, which will help the country prepare for its membership,” said Linkevičius.
The meeting discussed preparations for the 5th EU Eastern Partnership summit in Brussels in November. Significant attention was dedicated to trends in economic cooperation between Lithuania and Georgia, and between Georgia and the EU, as well as an opportunity to further expand and strengthen the cooperation. Lithuania shared its experience in the fields of strategic communications and the fight against propaganda. The delegations discussed relevant issues related to the conflict in Georgia and agreed to continue to coordinate their activities in international organizations.
The bilateral Commission was established in 2010 upon the signing of the Charter on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration. In 2015 in Batumi, Lithuanian and Georgian Foreign Ministers signed an updated Charter on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, which provided a framework for further development of a special partnership between Lithuania and Georgia, and regular meetings of the Commission.
