Georgia eyes EU candidate status but membership still distant dream

While Ukraine's hopes of beginning membership talks will take centre-stage at this week's European Union summit, another potential member, Georgia, will also be seeking progress towards eventual entry to the coveted club.

Surveys show that up to 90 per cent of Georgia's 3.7 million people support EU accession, and blue and yellow European flags are ubiquitous in the capital Tbilisi, fluttering from government buildings, businesses and private homes, according to Reuters.

For Giorgi Popiashvili, a 40-year old art director, Georgia's future clearly lies with Europe, not Russia, which effectively ruled the South Caucasus country for 200 years until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

"That's probably my dream, to see Georgia as a part of the European family," he told Reuters in Tbilisi. "We also love freedom... We've been fighting for our freedom for centuries."

Such enthusiasm, however, will not be enough to secure candidate status for Georgia. The ruling Georgian Dream party officially supports EU and NATO membership, but its track record on reforms has raised questions over how serious it is.

The government's conciliatory stance towards Russia has also irked Brussels.

"In the case of Georgia, we have a government that is seemingly more interested in doing business with Russia than advancing on the EU path," said a senior EU official involved in talks with countries which want to join.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Georgia had gone backwards on some key reforms, although the EU did not want to alienate a country that might otherwise fall back under Moscow's sway.

"So the EU's next move is about finding a balance..."