Kobakhidze Says EU candidate Status Guaranteed if Georgia Joins War, Adds Must be Avoided
By The Messenger Staff
Thursday, July 7, 2022
Irakli Kobakhidze, the chairman of Georgian Dream, stated that if we participate in the current war, our eligibility to become an EU candidate in December will be assured.
He asserts that Ukraine's inclusion as an EU candidate is a result of its involvement in the conflict.
“The connection between the war and the candidate status was directly emphasized by the leaders of the European Union. They directly said that Ukraine was granted candidate status because of the war. It was because of the war that it was offered to apply and because of the war it was given the status of a candidate, which is not my statement, it is the statement of the leaders of the European Union. Because of this, we can draw a very logical conclusion - if Georgia were or if tomorrow it finds itself in the same situation as Ukraine, in this case, we are guaranteed the status of a candidate. We have very high hopes that we will be able to get candidate status in December without this.
If we get involved in the military conflict, EU candidate status will be guaranteed for us in December, this is simple logic. We do not talk on purpose about who is asking and who is not asking for our involvement in the war. We would like to remind you that it was the radical opposition and the related NGOs who demanded the imposition of sanctions on Russia, which would increase tenfold the risks of Georgia's involvement in the war. Second, they directly demanded the sending of volunteers by planes to Ukraine, which means direct involvement of Georgia in the military conflict.
If a war starts in Georgia, it will be difficult for Russia, because several tens of thousands of soldiers with their equipment and everything will have to be in Georgia, wasting time. The second front would complicate the situation for Russia on the Ukrainian front, unlike Moldova - nothing would be complicated there. This war would be devastating for Georgia. Therefore, we must do everything to avoid this war,” said Irakli Kobakhidze.
