Marta Kos on the Georgian government: We will not cooperate with them until they take steps towards European values

Georgia’s candidate status exists only on paper, and we very much want to resume active cooperation with the Georgian government, but it must take steps forward, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos told journalists in Luxembourg ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers, responding to a question about whether the EU plans to cooperate with the Georgian government.

“As long as they are not moving forward and are instead regressing through the laws they have adopted, as long as there is no progress and they do not take steps towards European values, we will not cooperate with them,” Kos said.

She added that the EU continues to cooperate with civil society and supports the Georgian people.

“However, we have a very important message for the people of Georgia: although we are not cooperating with the government, we are working with civil society and supporting the people. There are many areas in which we provide assistance, and we will continue to do so. It would be good if Georgia’s status as a candidate country existed not only on paper, but progress requires the involvement of both sides,” Kos noted.