Georgia was notably absent from the EU Gymnich meeting – an informal gathering of the EU member states foreign ministers held in Warsaw on May 7–8. The high-level meeting, hosted in Poland, was called “to discuss the challenges for Europe’s foreign and security policy” and marked Europe Day with extended invitations to EU candidate countries. Despite having been granted candidate status in 2023, Georgia did not receive an invitation to participate.
European Commission Vice President Marta Kos posted on X, stating, “There is no better way to celebrate Europe Day than with our candidate countries. We all together should work on the unification of Europe. It is about peace, security, freedom and prosperity.”
EU officials attributed Georgia’s exclusion to its recent political trajectory, citing democratic backsliding and a weakening commitment to European values.
Ambassadors: Georgia Is Backsliding
Responding to questions about Georgia’s absence, EU Ambassador to Georgia Pawel Herczynski said the country had failed to demonstrate progress or political will since receiving candidate status.
“Unfortunately, since the moment of granting Georgia candidate status, we have not seen any progress, any openness, any desire for Georgia to become one of our members as soon as possible – on the contrary, and we have been saying this all this time and many of you remember my words over the past year,” Herczynski said. “The actions, decisions, legislation that the Georgian authorities have adopted over the past year, instead of bringing Georgia closer to EU membership, are moving Georgia away from the EU, and this will have consequences. ”
He added, “As the EU Ambassador to Georgia, it is very disappointing for me to see that a very important meeting of EU foreign ministers and EU candidate countries was held yesterday without Georgia’s participation.”
Asked why Georgia was not invited to the informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Warsaw, German Ambassador to Georgia Peter Fischer responded, “Because in June last year the EU decided to suspend high-level contacts with the Georgian government until it resolves the current crisis.” Fischer expressed hope that Georgia would “return to the right path.”
Georgian Dream Officials Say Exclusion “Unjust”, a “Double Standard”
GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze reiterated longstanding accusations that EU officials had acted unfairly toward Georgia. Calling the EU’s actions “injustice,” Kobakhidze added, “We did everything we could to receive candidate status in due time. We are doing everything that is necessary on our part.”
Kobakhidze also claimed that European officials were operating under directives from the “Deep State.”
“They have received a task from the ‘Deep State’ to oppose the national interests of our country as much as possible, which is sad,” he said. “How can it be our fault, not receiving candidate status in 2022? The injustice that we see toward our country and the Georgian people is the fault of the “Deep State.”
GD Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili described the decision as an “unfriendly act” by the Polish government and accused Polish officials of harboring sympathies for former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.
“This shows the wrong attitude of the Polish government towards the Georgian people,” Papuashvili said. “This is not the first time. The current Polish Foreign Minister believes that Mikheil Saakashvili is a modernizer.”
He added, “The Polish government must decide for itself what it wants—whether it wants relations with the Georgian people or whether it wants to support the corrupt, torture-creating Saakashvili regime. It turns out that the Polish government does not understand what the status of a candidate means and puts friendship with Saakashvili above rules, procedures and the interests of the Georgian people.”
GD Foreign Minister Maka Botchorisvhili called the non-invitation a “double standard” and pushed back against claims of democratic erosion.
“Ask Poland,” Botchorishvili told journalists when asked why Georgia was left out. “There is no less democracy in Georgia than anywhere else, no democratic backsliding… There are double standards everywhere.” She added ironically: “Unfortunately, we are unable to immediately correct the double standards.”
She elaborated, “Double standard is this: what is permissible in France, what is permissible in Germany, causes concerns regarding Georgia… “
When a journalist noted that the EU integration is the choice of the society, the GD Foreign Minister responded: “The choice of the Georgian people is this government, and all, you and they [the EU] should respect this choice.”
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