In Georgia, it was noted that the country was granted the status of a candidate for EU membership

On Friday evening, about twenty thousand people, including the President of Georgia and members of the government, took part in a rally and concert on Freedom Square in Tbilisi.

Earlier, the European Council decided to grant Georgia the status of a candidate for EU membership. Until now, Georgia was considered a state with only a “European perspective”.

The decision of the European Council was welcomed by all significant political forces of the country. A message was published on the Facebook page of the third president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, in which it was said that Georgia’s path to the EU was “opened by Ukraine”, but at the same time, “the Georgian people are the main subject that brings Georgia closer to full membership in the EU.”

The fifth president of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, came to the rally, but the government, which accuses her of violating the constitution with “non-agreed visits to the EU”, forbade her to speak from the podium.

Speaking at the rally, Prime Minister Irakliy Garibashvili said that Georgia “deservedly received the status of a candidate through struggle and hard work for many years.” He added that “enemies of Georgia both inside the country and abroad” tried to prevent the achievement of the goal, but “were defeated.” “From today, Georgia is a European country,” said the head of the Georgian government.

The authorities declare that they intend to fulfill the nine requirements of the EU to carry out deep institutional reforms, primarily in the judicial sphere and de-oligarchization for the transition to the next stage of European integration: the launch of official negotiations with Brussels on EU membership.

Mikheil Saakashvila’s United National Movement (END) party refused to take part in the rally together with the ruling Georgian Dream party. Oppositionists celebrated a “historic victory” in the party office. The Chairman of the EDU, Levan Khabeishvili, noted that Georgia received candidate status “despite the machinations of the Russian authorities of Georgia”, who “tried in every possible way to prevent the triumph of justice”.

The citizens of Georgia were congratulated by the ambassadors of the EU states accredited in Tbilisi, as well as the US ambassador Robin Dunnigan.

“The United States celebrates with you the fact that you are Georgians, which means that you are Europeans. We are proud to support Georgia on this path, and we will continue to do so,” the American diplomat said.

• Georgia submitted an official request to become a member of the EU in 2022. The process of European integration began back in 2014, when the country signed the “European Association” agreement, as well as the agreement “On a deep and comprehensive free trade zone” with the EU. Since 2017, citizens of Georgia have been able to travel to Schengen countries without visas.