On November 22, the delegation made up of officials from the Eastern Partnership, Western Balkan states and Poland visited Georgia to share their experience on visa liberalization issues with Georgian colleagues.
The meeting was hosted by Courtyard Marriot Hotel on Thursday, November 22 at 10:00 a.m.
Participants of the conference considered opportunities for visa-free travel to the EU and the experience Western Balkan states have gathered in this direction. The coalition, which is made up of organizations from Poland, Ukraine, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia, talked about the coalition strategy and Visa Liberalization Action Plan (VLAP) monitoring issues, which will be handed to Georgia early in December 2012. EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström will hand it over to the government of Georgia.
The action plans have been already handed over to Moldova and Ukraine. NGOs from the two countries have been already monitoring the document. The participants of the conference discussed efficient tools for VLAP monitoring.
As a result of the meeting a policy brief will be elaborated.
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Organizations taking part in the meeting:
The list of organizations to take part in the meeting is as follows: Europe without Barriers, a Ukrainian NGO, the Stefan Batory Foundation (Poland), the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (Moldova), the Caucasus Institute for Peace, Development and Democracy (Georgia), the Center for Economic and Social Development (Azerbaijan), Analytical Centre on Globalization and Regional Cooperation (Armenia), PASOS (the Policy Association for an Open Society – the Czech Republic), Georgian government officials, officials of the consulates of Schengen Area states, representatives of the International Organization for Migration and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), EU Ambassador to Georgia Phillip Dmitrov.