Ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, Romania’s Foreign Minister, Oana Toiu, expressed deep concern about the state of democracy in Georgia, particularly the treatment of opposition figures and the overall political climate.

“It’s crucial for us to protect freedoms like assembly, speech, and the ability to hold free elections,” Toiu said. “But it's equally important that opposition parties and their leaders are not intimidated by legal actions, as we’re seeing in Georgia.”

Toiu emphasized that Romania supports Georgia’s path toward EU membership but warned that recent developments raise serious concerns.

“We’ve experienced similar challenges in our own history, where citizens stood up to defend democracy, fight corruption, and protect our European future,” she said. “We believe Georgia’s citizens deserve the same – and their right to protest and speak freely must be protected.”

While Romania remains committed to maintaining open dialogue with Georgia, Toiu stressed that real progress on democratic standards is essential for Georgia to stay on the European path.

The EU Foreign Affairs Council, chaired by EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, is meeting today in Luxembourg. Key topics include the war in Ukraine, developments in Moldova, the EU's strategy in the Indo-Pacific, and the crisis in Sudan. A press conference is expected at 16:45 Tbilisi time.