“Georgia sees EU and NATO membership as a guarantee for economic prosperity and security and this choice of the Georgian people is codified in the Constitution of Georgia, said Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili in a speech delivered at the Euro-Atlantic Resilience Centre (E-ARC) in Romania.

According to the Speaker, as a reliable and responsible EU and NATO partner, Georgia has always been ready to contribute to European and Euro-Atlantic security despite the real and present danger of Russian reprisal for doing so: Over the years, it has achieved significant progress on NATO membership path and, in many ways, is already acting as an Ally.

“Nevertheless, 15 years have passed since the historic decision of the 2008 Bucharest summit promising that Georgia and Ukraine will become members of NATO; and more than 20 years have passed since Georgia submitted its bid for Euro-Atlantic integration. During this period, with the help and support of the Allies, we have developed democratic institutions beyond NATO’s entry-level standards and Georgian armed forces have become fully interoperable with the Alliance.

Therefore, it’s high time to have tangible progress in the political dimension of the integration process as well. Georgia shall be on the right side in the new security order that will be formed after the victory of Ukraine. These turbulent times, which seem to be here to stay, are the right moment for the EU too to fulfil the role for which it was created: sustainable regional peace, security, and prosperity.

The EU can revitalise its “soft power” by standing on the side of truth, morality and the values that the EU has long embodied. Under the Georgian Dream administration, Georgia signed the Association and Free Trade agreements and achieved a visa-free travel regime with the EU. Georgia’s successful democratic transformation in the last decade made the country clear frontrunner among the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood.

Yet, when the real decision about Georgia was due last year, EU reneged, granting us the European perspective instead of the EU candidacy status. Since then, the Parliament of Georgia leads the process of implementation of 12 recommendations that include issues of depolarization, judicial and electoral reforms, gender equality and others. We expect that Georgia’s performance will be assessed accordingly and respective decisions will be made based on merit along with considering wider geopolitical implications. It is critical to eliminate negative differentiation of Georgia from Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova any longer.

Georgian people and the government expect that the EU candidate status will be granted to Georgia this year. We also expect that EU accession negotiations with Georgia will start together with Ukraine and the Republic Moldova. These steps will have the potential to provide people with a cause to rally behind and the reassurance that in these uncertain times a better future is on the horizon. This is a watershed moment for Georgia’s European future but equally for the credibility of EU’s enlargement policy as a geostrategic investment in peace, stability, security and economic growth in the whole Europe.

Therefore, it’s high time to make strategic and forward-looking decisions that will firmly anchor Georgia – a future EU member state – to this common family of European democracies. Last but, certainly, not least, I would like to underline that Georgia and Romania enjoy a strong strategic partnership and we are committed to advance this cooperation further. We also count on support of our Romanian colleagues towards Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic cause. Our ties have withstood the test of time, and I am confident we share a common European future. I hope that the next decade will bring the much-dreamt EU and NATO umbrella above the Georgian sky,” he said.