Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has stated that Tbilisi still seeks EU integration because it believes the European Union will change. The politician made this remark in response to a question from a journalist during a panel discussion at a Euronews conference in Brussels.
The journalist raised the Georgian government’s criticism of the West, trying to clarify who the “European bureaucrats” are according to Tbilisi—whether this refers to the European Commission and the leaders of all 27 EU member states who back Brussels’ decisions. She asked Kobakhidze why Georgia wants to join the European Union at all under such circumstances.
The Prime Minister replied: “Because we are optimistic that they will change.” The journalist, however, countered, arguing that it is unlikely the entire bloc would adapt to Georgia:
“You are an intelligent man. You know that 27 [countries] will not say, ‘We will change to adapt to Georgia.’ They will say, ‘You want to join our club, you have to change.’ If you do not want that, you have the right not to be here. <…> But if you are here, it is because you want to be part of the club.”
According to the journalist, she was merely trying to constructively ascertain what can be done to restore previous relations between Tbilisi and Brussels: “So far, I really struggle to understand: it is all ‘bureaucrats,’ ‘fake,’ and ‘they must change’… Fine, but what is the next step?”
Kobakhidze responded by stating that his country wants to join the European Union “with dignity.”
“Georgia was part of the Soviet Union for about 70 years. And we remember those times; I was quite young, but I still remember the days when Moscow would say something and Georgia had to follow. That is not an appropriate approach in a democratic society. We want to have a different approach in Europe. And again, we are optimistic that this will change, that this approach will change,” Kobakhidze said.
During the exchange, the journalist also pointed out to the Georgian Prime Minister that many EU leaders do not even want to be photographed with him, but Irakli Kobakhidze insisted that he has “photos with all of them.”