Prime Minister of Latvia: EU to abolish visas for Georgia and Ukraine to 2016

Georgia and Ukraine have the opportunity to receive a visa-free regime with the EU in 2016, If the European Union will present a positive report on the issue by the end of 2015, said Prime Minister of Latvia Laimdota Straujuma.
"Georgia and Ukraine are actively working to meet the criteria and requirements. If by the end of the year the EC will provide a positive opinion, If a review at the end of the year will be positive, then Georgia and Ukraine in the coming year are able to obtain a visa-free regime, "- said Straujuma, quoted by RIA " Novosti ". European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said that the European Commission will present a new report on the progress of Ukraine and Georgia on the way to visa-free regime with the EU by about the fifteen of December.
"Georgia and Ukraine have made great progress in these past months. I gave today the Ukrainian and Georgian authorities a list of items on which Ukraine and Georgia are required to make additional efforts. The European Commission will present its next assessment (progress) presumably to fifteen December, and then the Council is obliged to solve. I'm quite optimistic with regard to the liberalization of the visa regime for Ukraine and Georgia, " - said Juncker. Before the last working day of the week was published the final Declaration of the summit of " Eastern partnership ", which contains provisions for the granting of visa-free regime between Ukraine and Georgia. Prior to this, the source said that the European Union will be able to note the visa regime with Ukraine only after graduation or complete freeze on its territory of armed conflict. Similarly, on Thursday, the Western media said that Belarus and Armenia refused to sign the final document because of the wording in the Crimea. The source revealed that Before the current time "in the fourth paragraph of the text appeared the phrase" annexation of Crimea ". However, the Ukrainian media said that the final Declaration will still be condemning " the annexation of Crimea." The fourth summit of "Eastern partnership" opened on Thursday in Riga." Eastern partnership - the EU-funded project on development of cooperation with European and Transcaucasian Soviet republics. 3 of the six countries participating in the project - Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia in 2014 signed the Treaty on the Union with the EU. Russian envoy to the EU Vladimir Chizhov have said before, that work on a final Declaration rather tense: some countries want to strengthen anti-Russian orientation, and others that create obstacles. Prior to this, Deputy Minister of foreign Affairs of Belarus Alena Kupchyna told, the summit of "Eastern partnership" may be the last in the case of promotion of members of the meeting of the anti-Russian subjects.


sections: Politics