On February 3, the European Commission released its assessments on Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine's compliance with the EU acquis, or corpus of shared rights and obligations. The European Commission's Opinions, which only addressed a few key areas of cooperation, were published in June 2022. According to a statement from the European Union delegation in Georgia, as part of the upcoming "Enlargement package" scheduled for the fall, the Commission will provide an update on how well the three countries are progressing in meeting the reform goals outlined in the Opinions. The statement added that these reports will take into account changes in policy made after June 2022 and will provide policy recommendations for reforms to be addressed in the coming period. In six categories, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine are seen to be in the early stages of preparation. Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine are all rated as having a moderate level of readiness in nine sectors each. Ukraine receives a "good level" rating in four areas, while Georgia and Moldova do not. 

Reaction from Georgia 

Irakli Garibashvili, the Prime Minister of Georgia, commented: "The document highlights the progress made by our country on the path of European integration and makes it clear that Georgia, as the number one reformer, deserves the status of an EU candidate country." 

Salome Zourabichvili, the President of Georgia, said: "It is very important that the European Commission positively assesses the steps taken by Georgia towards the alignment with the EU acquis. We welcome this positive assessment, which focuses on Georgia’s fulfillment of 12 recommendations so that Georgia can obtain candidate status in the shortest possible time." 

Teona Akubardia from Strategy Aghmashenebeli remarked: "It is very important that this positivity expressed in the report is accompanied by the fulfillment of 12 recommendations. We do not have the luxury of saying that everything is okay and that this is a precondition for receiving the candidate status. It is necessary to make further progress both in the implementation of the Association Agreement and in the fulfillment of the 12 recommendations, as well as to establish effective strategic communication with our Western partners." 

Khatia Dekanoidze from the United National Movement emphasized: "The positive report of the European Commission is very important for our country because we are at the most crucial stage when the country is striving to get the EU candidate status. But the fulfillment of 12 recommendations remains a challenge for the Georgian state and government, particularly in areas of democracy, media freedom, and political justice."