The European Commission believes that Georgia can be given the status of an EU candidate country, but only after a number of conditions are met, Head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said at a briefing today.

She said that the country must unite politically and carry out reforms in the sphere of civil society. The country has been granted the European “perspective” until it fulfills conditions spelt out by the European Commission that lead to EU candidate status.

The European Commission recommends recognizing Ukraine and Moldova as candidates for EU membership now while pointing out that they must implement a number of important reforms in the future.

EU leaders will make a final decision on granting or denying candidate status to Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova at a  23-24 June summit in Brussels. The decision to grant the status must be supported by all 27 member states of the union.