Georgia, Tbilisi, Sept. 4 / Trend N.Kirtskhalia /
President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy, who met with Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili urged the Georgian authorities to find more "pragmatic and constructive" ways to contribute to the settlement of the conflict with the separatist regions.
"The EU and Georgia have common interests so that these closed societies open to the modernization and development," he said. "Benefit received from the approximation to the EU - high standards, free trade, investment and visas liberalization - should be available to the entire society, including for the population, which was divided by the conflict."
Herman Van Rompuy also noted the "impressive" reforms carried out in Georgia under the EU, support, as a result of which "more effective institutions have been created and services for citizens improved."
He said that in view of the developed approach to Eastern partners "more in return for the most" (the more reforms a country implements, the more help it will receive from the EU), the EU has recently allocated to Georgia additional 22 million euros.