France Warns Georgia over Illegal Immigration

France and its European partners from the G5 (the UK, Spain, France, Germany and Italy) will reduce the number of visas issued to be issued to citizens from Georgia, Mauritania, Pakistan, Egypt and Cameroon if these countries fail to cooperate with the European states over the return of their illegal immigrants, AFP reported on September 5 quoting French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.

Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili, who left for France on September 9, will discuss the issue with the French Interior Minister, the Georgian Foreign Ministry reported.
 
Sarkozy, who described these five countries as “non-cooperative,” said that the G5 “gave them [these five ‘non-cooperative’ countries] three months, starting from August 1, to change their attitude.”

“If no improvement is noticed, we will remain firm in our position,” the French Interior Minister continued.

Sarkozy also said that starting from September 1 an “obligation to make a “declaration of return”” will be implemented in “a dozen consulates,” including the Tbilis consulate. “This concerns those people who were granted short-stay visas,” Sarkozy added.

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