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EuroWeekly (7 January 2021)

Georgia has announced its plans to apply for full European Union membership in 2024 as it seeks to strengthen ties with Europe and NATO.

The country, situated in the Caucuses region where Europe meets Western Asia, has announced its plans to apply for full European Union membership by 2024.

Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia said that one of the new parliament’s “top foreign policy goals” is “preparing to apply for full EU membership in 2024.” Georgia has enjoyed good relations with the EU for at least 15 years and has been in an Association Agreement with the bloc since 2016.

The country’s foreign minister, David Zalkaliani, said “We are already working on an annual action plan to prepare the country for 2024. It requires full consolidation and coordination between the legislative and executive authorities”.

Georgia is a country of about 3.7 million people, about a third of whom live in the ancient capital Tbilisi. A former Soviet state of the USSR, the country has had a turbulent relationship with its Russian neighbor since gaining independence in 1991. In 2008 the two countries went to war over the disputed border territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

It is one of several European countries that, for various reasons, have yet to join the EU’s 27-nation bloc.

https://www.euroweeklynews.com/2021/01/07/georgia-prepares-to-apply-for-full-eu-membership/