Council of Europe, Georgia to work on amendments to foreign agent law

The Council of Europe and Georgia will establish a working group to prepare amendments to the country's controversial foreign agent law.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset announced this during a press conference in Tbilisi, Caliber.Az reports citing Russian media.

“We will now create a working group with Georgia and experts from the Council of Europe and the Venice Commission to determine the changes that will be made to this law,” Berset stated.

Protests have been ongoing in Tbilisi and other Georgian cities since November 28, following the government’s announcement that it would suspend the country's EU accession talks until 2028. According to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, the decision was a response to what he described as unacceptable actions by European politicians, who, in his view, use grants and loans as a form of blackmail. Kobakhidze also criticized the European Parliament for years of what he called "insults" directed at Georgia.

During a meeting in Brussels in October, EU heads of state and government concluded that Tbilisi's actions were inconsistent with European principles and values. The EU summit's final statement indicated that Georgia’s EU accession process was effectively blocked.

By Vafa Guliyeva