Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili stated that the EU and individual member states periodically put forward new demands to candidate countries, which, according to him, artificially stall their EU accession process.
Speaking at the first (inaugural) conference of speakers of parliaments of EU candidate countries, the politician stated that the EU enlargement process must be merit-based, with achievements assessed consistently, fairly, and according to clear rules.
Papuashvili emphasized that accession conditions must be clear and progress achieved must be recognized in a timely manner. Furthermore, in his view, interim requirements should not change depending on the political climate.
The head of the Georgian parliament also stated that in practice, individual EU member states, and sometimes Brussels itself, put forward new and unexpected conditions for continuing accession talks. According to him, such demands often resemble political blackmail rather than a constructive approach.
He pointed out that such obstacles are often linked to the domestic politics of EU countries, their electoral cycles, or disputes over history and identity. Papuashvili noted that no candidate country is able to withstand a situation where any EU member state can block its progress for subjective reasons.
The speaker called on candidate countries to support one another to jointly overcome such obstacles on the path to EU membership.
