Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

The negotiations between Georgia and the European Union have not been disrupted or slowed down, an EU official said at a press conference with Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Davit Zalkaliani, Azerbaijan's Trend news agency reported on Wednesday.

According to Gunnar Wiegand, a senior official at the European External Action Service, the circulating information on an alleged slowdown in the talks between Georgia and the EU following the change of power in Georgia does not reflect the realities.

"I assure you that everything is going according to our plan," he said, noting that the main part of the negotiations will be completed very soon.

According to Zalkaliani, the 12th plenary session of the negotiations was held on Wednesday at the Georgian Foreign Ministry with the purpose to agree the text of the document on the Association Agreement between Georgia and the EU, and the main part of the document was agreed upon.

We recall that a delegation from the Council of Europe's Venice Commission, headed by its president, Gianni Buquicchio, arrived in the Georgian capital Tbilisi late on Wednesday and will be in the country for several days.

"Today we have moved forward in the negotiations. Only a few issues requiring consultation remain on the agenda," Zalkaliani said.

Zalkaliani also said the short-term priority of the Georgian government is to conclude negotiations on Association Agreement, free trade and the first phase of liberalization of the visa regime by the Vilnius summit of Eastern Partnership scheduled for November.

On the same day, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili met with the Venice Commission President at his estate in Kvareli.

The parties discussed current political processes in the country, planned constitutional changes, the process of adoption of the Law on General Courts and the amnesty.

According to the presidential administration, Buquicchio expressed hope that prior to the adoption of the Law, the Georgian parliament would receive and consider recommendations of the Venice Commission.

Furthermore, MP from the parliamentary minority David Bakradze said after meeting with the delegation of the Venice Commission that the Euro-Atlantic orientation of Georgia should be reflected in the Constitution.

"All political forces both within and outside the country should abandon the temptation to change the political course of Georgia. For this reason we initiated adoption of the law on immutability of the country's foreign policy," he said.

Bakradze said that if the opposition and the majority agree on the main provisions of the law, as well as on the political course, he would raise the issue of upgrading the status of a relevant legislative amendment.