With Georgian Dream in Power, What Next for EU Monitoring Mission?

This op-ed by members of the policy team at ZIF (German Center for International Peace Operations) discusses the growing hostility of the governing Georgian Dream towards the EU, and how this may affect the operations of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM).

Since taking power 2012, the Georgian Dream party has moved in a progressively more authoritarian and EU-sceptic direction in its foreign policy. Though it is not as yet a pro-Russian party, its hostility towards the EU has grown, escalated by the recent parliamentary elections which the European Parliament refused recognise due to widespread irregularities and voter intimidation.

EUMM, established in 2008, does not play a direct role in Georgian domestic affairs, so it may continue to aid in the stabilisation of the country. It provides services through a 24/7 hotline allowing Georgian, Abkhazian, South Ossetian, and Russian security actors to directly and instantly communicate, and operates Incident Prevention and Response Mechanisms to mediate relations between the actors in South Ossetia. The mandate of EUMM has currently been extended until 2026, and the risk remains that if EU-Georgia relations deteriorate further the invitation for the mission from the Georgian government may be rescinded

Reference: Harmuth, L. & Pietz, T. (2025). With Georgian Dream in power, what next for EU monitoring mission? EU Observer. 

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