Georgian FM: EU not ready to turn visa-free regime into political tool

The European Union is not prepared to use the abolition of the visa-free regime as a tool to pressure Georgia, and any attempts at blackmail are unfounded, Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili stated on October 21, Caliber.Az reported her remarks, citing Georgian media.

Botchorishvili said, "We have heard again how the issue of the visa-free regime is used against Georgia. Again, we have seen attempts to use the language of blackmail and turn the visa-free travel policy into an instrument of pressure on our country."

She emphasised that concerns about threats to cancel the visa-free regime are entirely baseless.

"It is impossible to build relations with Georgia in this way, as well as with anyone else," the Minister noted.

Botchorishvili also warned that using the visa-free regime as a political instrument against Georgia could set a dangerous precedent for other countries.

She added, "It has become clear that the EU is not ready to turn the visa-free regime into an instrument of political decision-making with one wave of the hand. Nevertheless, we see that the search for ways to partially use this issue as a pressure mechanism is still ongoing."

By Tamilla Hasanova