Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on October 12 during his visit to Georgia that the South Caucasus nation deserves to obtain European Union candidate status, adding that Hungary was “disappointed” by the EU's refusal to grant Georgia the status last year. In June 2022, the European Commission declined to grant Georgia EU candidate status, instead urging it to implement a series of reforms. The European Commission has urged Tbilisi to fulfill 12 conditions to obtain the status, including ending political polarization, progress on media freedom, judiciary and electoral reforms, and "de-oligarchization." To read the original story by RFE/RL's Georgian Service, click here.
Orban Says Georgia Deserves European Union Candidate Status
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili (left) and visiting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attend a welcoming ceremony in Tbilisi on October 11.