By the end of 2025, Georgia will not receive any financial assistance from the EU, the European Commission told Izvestia. Support is unlikely to resume in 2026, the European Parliament told the publication. We are talking about 120 million euros, the allocation of which was frozen back in 2024, as Brussels considered that Georgia did not meet the criteria of democracy. Despite the fact that the country is still a candidate for EU membership, its admission to the community by 2030 is also unlikely. Experts note that, despite this, the EU will try to maintain its influence in Transcaucasia, and Armenia will become a key partner in the region for Brussels, Izvestia reports.
The suspension of financial assistance to Georgia from the EU will extend to 2025, the European Commission told Izvestia.
"No support measures have been planned for this year," they said.
The EU stopped providing direct assistance to the Georgian authorities in the amount of more than 120 million euros in 2024. They were intended to support the implementation of economic reforms. At that time, the EU foreign ministers agreed to redirect these funds to "support Georgian civil society."
The suspension of aid occurred due to "serious concerns" about "a rollback from democratic principles and violations of the rule of law," and is likely to last into 2026, Tomasz Zdechowski, a member of the European Parliament from the European People's Party, said in a conversation with Izvestia.
"This does not mean a complete cessation of EU funding, but significant state—level funding is unlikely next year unless there are clear political changes," the politician said, answering a question from Izvestia about Georgia's chances of receiving EU financial assistance in 2026.
Brussels is also calling into question Georgia's prospects for EU membership. The European Commission believes that Tbilisi does not meet the criteria of a candidate country for membership in the community.
"Georgia is in a deep political crisis, and the human rights situation has deteriorated significantly since the 2024 parliamentary elections," the EC told Izvestia. — The Georgian Dream is strengthening its control over government and institutions. This is a coordinated policy of repression. It undermines basic democratic principles and suppresses dissent. The repressive actions of the authorities are far from everything one would expect from a candidate country.
