On April 14, a meeting of the Bureau of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee, chaired by Maka Bochorishvili, Chair of the Committee on European Integration, and Marina Kaliurand, Member of the European Parliament, was held in the form of a video conference. From the Georgian side, the Bureau meeting was attended by the Deputy Co-Chairs of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee from the Georgian side, Levan Ioseliani, Vice-Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia and Davit Zilfimiani, Deputy Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee.
The Bureau of the Association Parliamentary Committee discussed the dynamics of the implementation of the EU-Georgia Association Agreement, EU financial and technical assistance to Georgia in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, security challenges and hybrid threats, as well as the peaceful resolution of the Russia-Georgia conflict.
The bureau discussed the ongoing political processes in Georgia, the mediation process initiated by the President of the Council of the European Union Charles Michel, and reiterated that the EU expects an end to the political crisis in Georgia and further strengthening of parliamentary democracy.
Vakhtang Makharoblishvili, First Deputy Foreign Minister, and Richard Tibels, Head of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Eastern Partnership, spoke about the results achieved in the relations between the EU and Georgia during 2020.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Lasha Darsalia delivered a report on the situation in the Russian-occupied regions of Georgia and the government's peace policy at the meeting of the Association Committee.
Matthew Busque, Head of the European Commission's Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement (DG NEAR) Georgia and Moldova, made a report on the EU's financial and technical assistance to Georgia to address the challenges posed by COVID-19.