As EU foreign ministers gather in Brussels on July 15 for their last official meeting before the summer break, Georgia is once again high up on the agenda due to the deteriorating political situation in the South Caucasus republic after the recent arrests of several opposition politicians.

Just a brief discussion point among ministers last month, the situation in the country is now a major talking point -- and more decisive action may be taken this time after the previous adoption of symbolic measures against Tbilisi.

In early 2025, Brussels imposedvisa requirementson Georgian diplomatic passport holders. It has also refrained from holding high-level political meetings and diverted EU funding from Georgias government to civil society.

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The most pressing issue this time is whether the bloc -- with the unanimous approval of all 27 member states -- manages to impose any sanctions.

There have been attempts before, notably in January, when the EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wanted to slap visa bans and asset freezes on 13 individuals linked to the Georgian Dream party for a crackdown on opposition protesters.

Dissenting Voices In Bratislava And Budapest

Back then, Hungary and Slovakia vetoed any such moves, and sanctions talks stalled in Brussels for a while.

EU officials have in recent weeks also discussed the possibility of blacklisting a couple of people responsible for what an internal EU document seen by RFE/RL calls the instrumentalization of the justice system by the Georgian authorities.

This would occur under the EU global human rights sanctions regime -- a sanctions framework similar to the US Magnitsky act that already includes more than 100 human rights abusers from various countries, such as China, Libya, Russia, and Sudan.

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According to several EU officials familiar with the discussions more than 10 EU member states -- including France, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Sweden and the Baltic trio of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania -- have been pushing for sanctions to be adopted by EU foreign ministers.

Just like in January, Bratislava and Budapest have been resisting the move, arguing that any type of restrictive measure could worsen the situation and that dialogue with Tbilisi is a better approach.

While not siding with Slovakia and Hungary, Greece has been arguing against taking any hasty decisions.

Despite the obvious opposition, many diplomats RFE/RL has spoken to on condition of anonymity believe that there still is a chance of finding a consensus to blacklist at least a couple of Georgian judges, whom the EU deems responsible for the arrest of Georgian oppositionists. Its believed that sanctions-skeptic countries may accept this instead of targeting high-profile politicians.

So, what other options are being discussed?

A Radical Move

The most obvious one is to suspend visa liberalization for Georgian citizens -- a move that only requires a qualified majority of 55 percent of member states representing 65 percent of the total EU population.

Sweden is the latest country to push for this, arguing that it can be done temporarily if the situation continues to worsen after Georgian local elections in early October.

This view is apparently also supported by the Baltic states, Denmark, France, and Poland.

Others have expressed reservations, however -- notably Greece and Slovenia.

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They argue that such a radical move -- with the bloc never having suspended visa liberalization for an EU candidate country before -- should be taken as an absolute last resort.

It has also been pointed out that such a step would likely have more of a negative impact on ordinary Georgian citizens rather than the countrys leadership.

Another alternative proposal put forward by the European Commission is to impose national entry bans on certain individuals.

A 'Softer Measure'

This is regarded as a somewhat softer measure compared to imposing a blanket suspension of EU visa liberalization or broader sanctions. However, it would only be effective if several member states chose to adopt and coordinate this approach.

Whether that will happen remains uncertain, as some countries -- such as Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, and Romania -- have stressed that it still is important to keep communication channels open with Tbilisi.

The internal EU document also mentions the possibility of suspending Georgias candidate status, which the bloc unanimously bestowed on the country back in December 2023.

The EU, however, has never before unilaterally reversed candidate status in its history (Iceland asked Brussels to remove its EU candidate status back in 2015). Once again, unanimity would be necessary to take this step.

Finally, there is an option that could likely be achieved this week: a large group of countries, led by the Baltic trio, plans to ask the European External Action Service and the European Commission to conduct a thorough assessment of the EU-Georgia Association Agreement from 2016.

The goal would be to explore the possibility of suspending parts of the agreement in the future, such as the free trade provisions it includes. Such a suspension would require only a qualified majority.