Eastern Europe Archives

A leading opposition politician has accused the Georgian government of pro-Russian bias, tacitly condoned by the EU, but representatives of the ruling party, as well as diplomats, insist there is a consensus on big geopolitical matters and the entire country is pro-Western.

Germany’s minister of state for Europe delivered a blunt message to a gathering of the Eastern Partnership, organised in the Georgian Black Sea city of Batumi on Thursday (11 July): unless reforms in Eastern Europe speed up, its young people will leave to find a better life in Western Europe.

Slovakian president Zuzana Čaputová has criticised Beijing for not respecting human rights, during a visit by China's foreign affairs chief on Wednesday (10 July). Wang Yi was in Slovakia to discuss the involvement of the Visegrád Four in the Silk Road project.

Georgia staked its claim to becoming an EU member on Thursday (11 July), even if it meant an innovative approach and "knocking on every door", its president told an international conference marking the tenth anniversary of the Eastern Partnership in the Georgian Black Sea city of Batumi.

Georgia intends to continue on its path to EU membership and wants to use all available opportunities and instruments to achieve this self-proclaimed objective, writes David Zalkaliani.

Thousands of anti-government protesters rallied on Monday (24 June) in the Georgian capital for the fifth consecutive day as the increasingly unpopular ruling party's promise of sweeping reforms failed to appease mass demonstrations.

Several thousand anti-government protesters took to the streets of the Georgian capital Tbilisi for a fourth day on Sunday (24 June) as tensions rose between Moscow and its ex-Soviet neighbour.

Thousands of protesters attempted Thursday (20 June) to storm the Georgian parliament in Tbilisi, furious that a Russian lawmaker addressed the assembly from the speaker's seat during an international event.

In a wide-ranging interview, the Ambassador of Georgia to the EU talked about the lessons learned from 10 years of Eastern Partnership, her country’s reforms, relations with neighbours, including the biggest one – Russia.

On 9 April 1989, Soviet tanks rolled into Tbilisi, and Georgians realised Gorbachev’s regime was just as steeped in blood as that of his predecessors. Thirty years on, Georgia remembers its heroes, writes Natalie Sabanadze.

The new president of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, is a worthy member of the small group of women in the club of world heads of state and government, writes Clare Moody.

Georgia's incoming President Salome Zurabishvili vowed to reconcile political divisions and deepen ties with NATO and Europe at Sunday's inauguration that opposition protesters were blocked from reaching.

Results from Georgia’s presidential runoff showed the ruling party-backed candidate, who favours balancing the ex-Soviet republic’s relations with Moscow and the West, defeating her rival who advocates a stronger pro-Western line.

Ex-French diplomat Salome Zurabishvili has taken a slight lead in Georgia's presidential election, seen as a crucial test for the increasingly unpopular ruling party, results showed on Monday (29 October).

Many praise Georgia as being a good pupil in the Eastern Partnership class, but cementing contacts between Georgia and EU citizens is much more than signing political agreements, writes Mikheil Batiashvili.

The offer by the European Commission to let the College meet on an annual basis with Georgia’s leadership is unique when comparing it to relations between the EU and other third countries, writes Steven Blockmans.

When NATO leaders meet in Brussels this week they should have Georgia on their minds, write Amanda Paul and Ana Andguladze.

Many forces wish to undermine Georgia’s democratic development, and this is why the EU engagement and cooperation must be much more active, writes Gunnar Hökmar.

EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini assured Georgia on Tuesday (12 June) that ten years after Russia's occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the EU has not given up seeking a “true solution” to the conflict.

Georgia said on Tuesday (29 May) it had started procedures to sever diplomatic relations with Syria after Damascus recognised its breakaway regions as independent states, a move Tbilisi dubbed manipulation from Russia.

In 2009, the EU launched the Eastern Partnership (EaP), which so far has been one of the most successful foreign policy initiatives of the EU. Consistently implemented EaP policy is bringing benefits.

The Eastern Partnership summit will uphold the offer of tightening EU-Georgia relations, Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski told a joint press conference with Swedish counterpart Margot Wallström and Georgia’s Mikheil Janelidze in Tbilisi on Tuesday (14 November). EURACTIV Poland reports.

The leaders of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia launched an 826-km rail link connecting the three countries on 30 October, establishing a freight and passenger link between Europe and China that bypasses Russia.