00:00The EU is urging the Georgian government to stick to the path of democratic reform if
00:05it's to join the European Union. Several MEPs have called on the EU's foreign policy chief
00:09Josep Borrell to impose sanctions against the Georgian government, while Georgians have
00:14taken to the streets protesting against the so-called agents of foreign influence law,
00:18which is widely seen as a Kremlin-style legislation aimed at stifling free speech.
00:23Georgia after all is a candidate country, and again we hope, we expect and we call on
00:29authorities to go back to the European path and deliver on all the commitments they took
00:33upon themselves voluntarily when they applied for the candidate status for their country.
00:39The European Commission has also condemned Tbilisi for using brutal force against opposition
00:44politicians and journalists. The position of the Georgian government, led by the Georgian
00:48Dream Party, risks setting the country backwards away from its stated ambition of EU membership.
00:54Twelve member states have asked the EU to clarify whether the law will lead to the potential
00:58suspension of membership talks.
01:07So I think it's now time for the EU to say enough of these double games. You can't be
01:13part of the accession process and at the same time introducing legislation which is completely
01:19at odds with Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, completely at odds with the undertakings
01:26that the Georgian government has given to the European Commission.
01:30The scenes in Tbilisi today echoed those in Maidan in 2014, when Ukraine was poised to
01:35move closer to the European Union. Georgia was awarded candidate status for the EU in
01:39November last year, to much jubilant scenes. But critics say this law is straight out of
01:44the Kremlin playbook, where the government will be able to go after anyone who opposes
01:48it, including journalists, politicians or anyone advocating for civil rights.
01:53Shona Murray, Euronews, Brussels.
01:56Shona Murray, Euronews, Brussels.
