Good news for citizens of Georgia, the new Visa Liberalization arrangement issued by the EU Commission has reached the final stage. Now citizens will be able to travel without visas in 26 countries of the EU block.
Munich Airport security station – Politikaner CC 3.0
The commission has said Georgia and Ukraine have carried out the reforms that had promised, and a formal legal recommendation is due out in early 2016. Georgians, who have had unpleasant experiences before when traveling to the Shengen zone, will feel some relief now. The Head of the RCSS emphasized that visa liberalization with the European Union does not abolish borders between Georgia and the EU, but makes it easier to cross. According to news from Georgia Today, the Director of the Regional Center for Strategic Studies (RCSS), Mikheil Mirziashvil had this to add:
“This does not guarantee our instant membership to the EU, even if we have successfully fulfilled the Association Agreement (AA) with the EU signed in June 2014. For Georgia, this is a process to become a country like European Union members are. We need to build our State like an EU country in economic, social and human rights areas and only then will we be able to make the fairly ambitious request for EU membership.”
The authorities went on to stress, this latest development does not guarantee Goergia’s instant membership to the EU. For Georgia in particular, this is simply part of the process to become like European Union members are.