Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze and EU Ambassador Carl Harcell met to discuss Georgia’s progress and trends towards the European integration and ongoing reforms this week, GeorgiaToday reports.
“Georgia's integration into the EU is a top priority for us and the support of European friends in this process has a great importance,” said Bakhtadze during the meeting with the new head of the EU Delegation to Georgia.
It was noted that Georgia leads the Eastern Partnership in terms of reforms implemented and progress achieved. They emphasized the importance of further strengthening the Eastern Partnership and that they would celebrate the 10th anniversary of the initiative next year.
The focus was on the progress of the visa liberalization process, the road map of Georgia's integration into the European Union that Georgia received after successful reforms in 2015, and also on the new high level bi-lateral cooperation format, the first meeting of which will be held in Brussels in November with the Prime Minister of Georgia and the President of the European Commission. In addition, the discussions touched on the high level of relations between Georgia and the European Union, on meetings with European Commission President Junkers and EU High Representative Federica Mogherini during the Prime Minister’s visit to the United States, and on general high-level visit dynamics.
Prime Minister Bakhtadze informed the Ambassador about ongoing reforms, including fundamental changes in the education sector, and praised the Erasmus Program, which has increased its funding for Georgia.
Both parties underlined the successful implementation of the Association Agreement and DCFTA (Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area), as well as cooperation between Georgia and the European Union. The Prime Minister and the Ambassador also discussed the serious humanitarian situation in the occupied territories and the EU's role in overcoming the situation, as well as the Georgian government's peace initiative aimed at restoring confidence among conflict affected populations.