Rally in support of Georgia's EU membership to be held in Vilnius

VILNIUS – A rally will be held in front of Georgia's embassy in Vilnius on Monday to support the Black Sea nation's bid to join the European Union.

The event follows the Georgian government's announcement last week that it is postponing the EU accession process until the end of 2028, sparking large protests in the capital Tbilisi and other cities.

"We stand with the Georgian people in their fight for closer ties with the European Union, which upholds democratic values, and we condemn the arbitrary, pro-Russian government of the Georgian Dream party," said the event's organizers.

According to them, the Kremlin, which supports the party and rejects Western values, "is doing its utmost not to lose influence in the territories it once ruled".

The former Soviet republic officially gained EU candidate status in December 2023. However, Brussels has frozen the process, demanding concrete steps from Tbilisi to address what it calls democratic backsliding.

The Black Sea nation has faced turmoil since the ruling Georgian Dream party declared victory in the October 26 parliamentary election, which the pro-European opposition claims was rigged.

A resolution by the European Parliament states that voters were harassed, votes were manipulated, and the electronic voting system was tampered with, while election observers and the media were interfered with.

In response to the recent developments, a number of Georgian ambassadors, including the one in Lithuania, resigned, and the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry imposed sanctions on ten senior officials of the Georgian Interior Ministry.