After Ukraine, Georgia!
No, it's not a Western plot, a CIA or NATO manoeuvre.
For several days now, Georgians have been taking to the streets to oppose the suspension of negotiations to join the European Union, a goal set out in their constitution. 160 of the country's diplomats have joined them in solidarity. Civil servants resign; their government prefers Moscow.
The “Georgian Dream” - the name of the party founded by a Putin-supporting oligarch who thought he had bought his country - has turned into a nightmare.
As in Maïdan in 2014, a people is rising up against the results of parliamentary elections that international observers have found to have been the target of sophisticated falsifications. Fraud and its violence are back. This is a fight for freedom.
While often disenchanted Europeans are still arguing over domestic political issues, in their immediate vicinity, once again, there is a vibrant and dramatic call for help. On the borders of the European Union, people are risking their lives to gain access.
These events are compelling enough for us. Firstly, to show solidarity with those who adhere to our values and are prevented from implementing them. But also to strengthen our Union. It is for the sake of the world and the future of democracy that it must be able to oppose Russia's expansionist imperialism, to fight against criminal powers that aggress, imprison, torture, bribe and repress.
The Ukrainians are showing on a daily basis that they refuse to submit, and are paying for it with their blood. Georgians are shouting it out. Now more than ever, people have their say in alliances and the governance of public affairs. Their courage drives them to demand it.
Pride and complacency in the face of inevitable enlargement are no longer an option. Making Europe's economic and military unity stronger is an imperative duty in the light of the pledges to what we have built. It is a duty commensurate with the challenges they present us with. It is a matter of the utmost urgency for our own future.
