Brussels, 19/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 18 October, while visiting Georgia with the deputy secretary general of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Helga Schmid, European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Füle welcomed the peaceful transfer of power after Georgia's parliamentary elections on 1 October. “In burying their differences, the leaders of Georgia ensured that the historic transfer of power proceeded smoothly. President Saakashvili and Mr Ivanishvili have put their country's best interests first and we salute their statesmanship and their patriotism”, Füle said, while the president appointed Bidzina Ivanishvili - his opponent - as prime minister the previous day. Stating that the EU is counting on them to continue to work together in a constructive spirtit, Füle said that he knows that cohabitation can be difficult.
Moving forward on EU-Georgia relations. Saying that he is looking forward to working in close collaboration with the new government, Füle added that he wants to push the integration process towards political association and economic integration “still further”. He said that they greatly appreciated the state of preparation of the new governmental team which intends to assure the continuation of this effort, and he thanked the former team for its work on the reforms thus far. He recalled the important role of the opposition and encouraged the new government to hold a dialogue with civil society. (CG/transl.fl)