Kakha Kaladze, the secretary general of the ruling Georgian Dream party and Tbilisi mayor, on Monday said the country’s current authorities “welcome” the inflow of Russian tourists amid Moscow’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine. 

In his press comments, Kaladze slammed the United National Movement opposition for its critical comments to the government for not imposing visa restrictions on Russia nationals amid their “mass inflow”, and said it was the former president Mikheil Saakashvili who removed the visa requirements for Russiansin 2012 and was “welcoming Russian tourists at the borders”. 

He also said the UNM had sold strategic facilities to Russia, following its conflict with Georgia in 2008. 

Domestic opposition groups and civil society organizations fear Russia could later use its citizens for sparking various tensions inside the country, claiming the Georgian Dream government is pursuing the “pro-Russian course”.