Papuashvili: No Legal Grounds for EU to Suspend Georgia's Visa-Free Travel
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
Speaker of Parliament Shalva Papuashvili has responded to newly announced reforms to the European Union's visa-free suspension mechanism, stating that there is no legal basis for the EU to revoke Georgia's visa-free regime.
His comments follow an agreement between the European Parliament and the European Council to expand the grounds under which the EU may suspend visa-free travel for short-term visits. The updated mechanism includes new triggers such as violations of the UN Charter, human rights abuses, failure to comply with international court rulings, and hybrid threats, including the instrumentalization of migrants and the use of "golden passport" schemes.
Papuashvili said the changes do not apply to Georgia's case and accused the EU of previously breaching its own obligations. "The suspension of visa-free travel for holders of diplomatic and service passports already constituted a violation of an international agreement by the EU, since no legal justification was presented," he stated.
He added that while no objective reason exists for suspending Georgia's visa-free status, political motivations could lead to unjustified actions. "If someone is not looking for a basis but rather a pretext, they will always find one," Papuashvili said, accusing Brussels of acting with "party bias and harmful intent" in previous decisions regarding Georgia.
The EU maintains that the new framework is designed to ensure flexibility in responding to violations of visa-free terms while retaining existing conditions such as cooperation on readmission.
Papuashvili warned that arbitrary decisions could damage trust in EU institutions and emphasized that Georgia continues to meet its obligations under the current agreement.
