Former Soviet republic Georgia signed a free-trade and political cooperation agreement with the European Union on Friday, marking a historic shift away from Russia. The accord falls short of full EU membership for Georgia but offers deep economic integration and unfettered access to the EU's 500 million citizens. "The people of Georgia have chosen democracy, reforms and the irreversible path of European integration," Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told EU leaders at a summit in Brussels. (Reuters)