Mass protests continued in Georgia for nearly a week after the government postponed membership negotiations with the European Union. Thousands gathered in front of the parliament building in Tbilisi, where riot police sprayed protesters with water cannons and tear gas. Demonstrators threw fireworks and built barricades. The police arrested some 300 people while 26, including three officers, sustained injuries, the Associated Press reported.
On December 1, the Georgian Foreign Ministry stated on X that the Georgian government’s refusal to negotiate with the EU until 2028 does not mean suspending the integration:
"The decision of the Georgian government not to raise the issue of negotiations with the EU until 2028 and to decline EU grant budget support does not mean suspension of Georgia’s European integration process."
The claim is misleading.
While the Georgian government has not formally abandoned the nation’s EU aspirations, the delays in EU negotiations and rejection of financial support significantly undermine practical steps required for accession. These moves weaken Georgia’s alignment with EU standards, stall progress on necessary reforms, and foster skepticism among European partners about Tbilisi’s true commitment to integration.
In October, the ruling Georgian Dream party, seen as pro-Russian, won parliamentary elections, allowing one of its leading figures, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, to retain his position. On November 28, the European Parliament condemned Georgia’s election as unfair, accusing Georgian Dream of democratic backsliding. EU lawmakers called for a rerun within a year, under international supervision and with independent election monitoring.
Earlier in June, the United States sanctioned Kobakhidze and members of his party for “undermining democracy in Georgia, ... undermining the freedom of peaceful assembly and association, violently attacking peaceful protesters, intimidating civil society representatives, and deliberately spreading disinformation at the direction of the Georgian government.”
On November 28, Kobakhidze, backed by the parliament, put off the nation’s EU accession talks for four years, citing “blackmail and manipulation” by European politicians. He stated that Georgia would not pursue negotiations or accept EU grants until 2028.
In December 2023, the EU granted Georgia candidate status, contingent upon Tbilisi’s meeting of the bloc’s recommendations. But EU officials froze accession talks and cut financial support earlier this year when Georgia passed its "foreign influence" law, widely viewed as a setback for democratic norms.
In a resolution adopted October 9, the European Parliament said Georgia had effectively stalled its EU integration by adopting that law and anti-LGBT legislation:
“[T]he European Council of 14 and 15 December 2023 granted Georgia candidate country status on the understanding that the relevant steps set out in the Commission recommendation of 8 November 2023 would be taken; stresses that recently adopted legislation clearly goes against this ambition and has effectively put on hold Georgia’s integration into the EU.”
The Georgian government’s decision to defer discussions about opening EU accession negotiations until 2028 marks a significant delay in the integration timeline. EU enlargement discussions are complex and time-sensitive, requiring consistent political will and alignment with EU standards. By choosing to defer negotiations, the government risks signaling a de-prioritization of EU integration, despite its rhetoric to the contrary.
Observers and critics argue that delaying these discussions creates a gap in engagement, potentially undermining progress toward meeting the EU’s strict political, economic, and legal criteria for joining.
The lack of negotiations also reduces chances to tackle important issues like judicial reforms, anti-corruption efforts, and protecting democratic institutions — areas the EU has emphasized as essential for membership. This delay could make it harder for Georgia to show it is ready to join the EU and maintain public support for integration.
Georgia’s rejection of EU budgetary grants is another impediment on its path to integration. These grants are usually meant to support reforms and development projects that are essential for meeting the EU’s accession requirements.
Rejecting such financial support undermines Georgia’s capacity to implement necessary changes and signals a potential shift away from reliance on EU mechanisms for modernization.
EU representatives and international observers had previously expressed concerns over Georgia’s democratic backsliding, including reports of weakened judicial independence, political repression, and media restrictions. These issues further complicate Georgia’s EU aspirations and cast doubt on the government’s commitment to reforms necessary for integration.
On November 30, the U.S. State Department said that Georgia’s suspension of EU accession “goes against the promise to the Georgian people enshrined in their constitution to pursue full integration into the European Union and NATO.”
In this regard, the United States suspended its strategic partnership with Georgia due to the anti-democratic actions of the Georgian Dream party, which, the U.S. said, violates core principles of the U.S.-Georgia alliance. These principles include “democracy, rule of law, civil society, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and anti-corruption efforts,” all of which the ruling party is seen by the United States as undermining.