Rikard Jozwiak, the editor of the European Bureau of "Radio Liberty," who got acquainted with the draft report of the European Commission, said that in terms of meeting the technical criteria for closer integration with the European Union, Georgia is well ahead of Moldova and Ukraine. The report is scheduled to be published in the second half of January.

The report will assess Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia's compliance with EU legislation in 32 areas, which the EU calls "chapters." Compliance with these "chapters" is necessary for the candidate country to start negotiations on EU membership.

Speaking about the assessment report, Jozwiak noted that "it seems that Georgia will have the best assessment, which is the result of years of pro-European and somewhat reform-oriented governments." He says Georgia is assessed as "averagely prepared," including in economy and finance. However, the country lags behind in law, intellectual property, and agriculture.

In comparison, while Ukraine received top marks in foreign relations and defense and security, most areas in the country are "at some level of readiness." "As for Moldova, the report is even tougher," – Jozwiak explained. According to him, if Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia want to join the EU in the next 5-10 years, they should read this document carefully. Enthusiasm is not enough at this stage, and many concrete steps must be taken. Of the three countries, Moldova currently has the most work to do - most areas, according to the European Commission, are "at an early stage" and the rest "at some level of preparation." 

The European Commission's evaluation reports on the associated trio in June 2022 reiterate the political criteria for EU membership. Last year, Georgia was awarded "European perspective." The European Commission presented 12 recommendations to the country, which must be fulfilled to obtain candidate status. Significantly, Moldova and Ukraine have become candidate countries for EU membership.

In October 2023, the European Commission will publish the annual report on the enlargement of the European Union, which is expected especially in Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia. The report will detail the progress of these three countries toward the EU and provide specific recommendations. By the end of the year, EU members may already decide whether Moldova and Ukraine will be able to start accession negotiations and whether Georgia will receive the status of a candidate country. However, this requires all twenty-seven members to reach a consensus, which is not an easy task.

Last summer, the European Commission considered the applications of Tbilisi, Kyiv, and Chisinau with extraordinary speed – a process that normally takes much more than a year was completed in three months. Because of this, the European Commission focused only on the political criteria for membership. This January, the second part of the assessment will be published, going into much more technical detail. It will look at how well each country is complying with EU legislation in everything from science and environment to foreign and security policy.