Brussels, 13/12/2011 (Agence Europe) - Free trade talks between the European Union and Georgia will start in 2012, possibly in March, talks that Georgia sees as a step in the direction of joining the EU.
Technical aspects will be discussed in January, but the talks proper over a free trade deal between the EU and Georgian will not start until March, when EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht visits Tbilissi. After a meeting with Georgian Prime Minister Nika Gilauri in Brussels on Monday 12 December 2011, De Gucht said the talks would not only cover tariffs, goods and services, but also approximation of regulations and laws between the EU and Georgia.
The free trade deal is part of a wider association agreement under negotiation since July 2010, which both sides are very excited about. On behalf of the Polish Presidency, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, who was present at the talks on Monday, said that under the Eastern Partnership, the integration of Georgia's economy with the EU will be a strong impulse to restore the country's territorial integrity. Gilauri said the upcoming start of free trade talks showed that Georgia is closer to the EU than ever. (EH/transl.fl)