Politico: The EU is inclined to implement “tougher measures” against Georgia, including sanctions

The European Union may impose sanctions against representatives of Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia party amid anti-government protests and the suspension of the EU membership process, Politico writes, citing two anonymous EU diplomats.

According to them, the statement by the new head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, where she said that actions against protesters and the ruling party’s decision to halt the EU membership process could have “consequences,” suggests that the EU might apply sanctions against members of the ruling party. One of the sources says the next meeting of EU foreign ministers, scheduled for Dec. 16, would be “the right time” to make a relevant decision. Another diplomat noted that sanctions “could be proposed at any moment,” including this week, and confirmed later. “Georgia is a candidate country for EU membership, which means it has obligations, but the same holds true for the EU, especially regarding participation in and response to events occurring in the country,” the source said.
According to Politico, the EU is now inclined toward “tougher measures that will indicate how costly Tbilisi’s pivot away from Europe could become.”

A new wave of protests began in Georgia on Nov. 28. The trigger was Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s announcement that the Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia party had decided not to include discussions on EU membership in the agenda until the end of 2028 and to abandon the entire grant budget. Kobakhidze stated that the reasons for this decision were the EU’s ongoing blackmail regarding the initiation of dialogue on EU membership, demands to annul several laws passed by parliament, and calls for sanctions against the Georgian authorities.