European Commission report: The Georgian authorities’ declared aspiration to join the EU is contradicted by their systematic engagement in hostile anti-EU rhetoric, undermining of fundamental values and failure to address key EU-related reforms
On EU integration, the Georgian authorities’ declared aspiration to join the EU is contradicted by their systematic engagement in hostile anti-EU rhetoric, undermining of fundamental values and failure to address key EU-related reforms, - reads the European Commission’s 2026 enlargement report.
According to the report, The Prime Minister’s announcement in November 2024 that the government would not pursue the opening of accession negotiations until 2028 contradicts the priorities set out in the Constitution and the government programme for 2025-2028.
“It also stands in stark contrast with Georgian citizens’ broad support for EU membership. EU integration formally remained under the coordination of the Directorate-General on European Integration in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The EU Integration Committee within Parliament retained its oversight function. No high-level political meeting between the EU and Georgia took place in the reporting period.
The increasing concentration of political power within the ruling party and executive institutions continued. Parliamentary oversight of the executive and security services remains limited. Recent legislative and institutional changes have further centralized decision-making and regulatory functions in key areas within the government administration, including public administration, the judiciary and security. This has resulted in weakened institutional independence and fewer checks and balances. Conditions for participatory decision-making remain inadequate, as mechanisms for involving civil society and the public in policy and decision-making are still lacking.
State authorities continue to exercise political, administrative and financial pressure on local decision-making, with supervision and coordination mechanisms between the national and local levels remaining underdeveloped. The decentralisation strategy for 2020-2025 expired and a new strategy is not yet in place. During the reporting period, 885 units of properties were transferred from central government to municipalities, contributing to a further decentralisation of local assets and powers’, reads the report.
