Droa opposition party leader Elene Khoshtaria said on Tuesday that the recent entry of a cargo ship involving a sanctioned company in the Batumi port could be related to the “informal ruler” of the country, founder of the Georgian Dream ruling party, Bidzina Ivanishvili. 

Georgian Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili said on Monday that the country’s customs authorities did not agree to accept the cargo.

“We have studied the documents and therefore the customs authorities make the decision with the responsibility that they have. In Georgia, there have been no cases of bypassing international sanctions [which were imposed on Russia for invading Ukraine]. It will be the same in this case. Someone may want to bring such products to Georgia, you can find out their motivation yourself, ask the consignor, but Georgian government agencies act with maximum responsibility,” Davitashvili told journalists. 

Khoshtaria said that Davit Iakobashvili, “who is engaged in the oil business in Georgia, is behind this cargo.” 

She claimed that the “country’s informal ruler Ivanishvili” and the people affiliated with him, could  be connected with the incident. "According to our information, behind this fact is Davit Iakobashvili, who also holds Swedish citizenship. He signed a partnership agreement with Rosneft in 2014 and acquired 49% of its company from Rosneft. Formal documents were reworked after the sanctions. This is directly related to Vladimir Yevtushenkov [Russian oligarch], the Yevtushenkov who was talking to Ivanishvili on the phone and calling him Borinka,” Khoshtaria said. 

She stated that it was important to cooperate with partners, “the country not to be sanctioned,” noting that the ship would not have sailed 500 kilometers without any previous guarantees.