Protection of Constitutional Identity in Georgia vis-a-vis Negotiations on Its Accession to the EU

Abstract

Georgia’s relations with the European Union (EU), with varying degrees of intensity and success, date back to the 1990s. Special dates include 8 July 2014, when the Association Agreement between Georgia and the EU was signed; 3 March 2022, when Georgia officially applied for membership in the EU; and 15 December 2023, when Georgia was officially granted the status of a EU candidate state – one of the most important events in the country’s modern history. In this context, maintaining a balance between preserving Georgia’s constitutional identity on the one hand and full-fledged European integration on the other is of particular importance. In this regard, the role of a litmus test may be played by the implementation of the so-called 12-point plan by Tbilisi and the assessment of this implementation by Brussels. Therefore, this article aims, on the one hand, to analyse and define the constitutional identity of Georgia via elaboration of the practice of the Constitutional Court of Georgia, and on the other, to assess the degree of impact of the implementation of the 12-point plan on that identity. The comprehensive analysis also includes a brief analysis of the fundamental principles of the Georgian Constitution and the influence of the rule of law in assessing the implementation of the 12-point plan.