Ex-pres Saakashvili says new US sanctions on Russian oil giants will affect Kulevi and Georgia as ‘Rosneft clients’

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili on Thursday said the newly imposed US sanctions on Russia’s major oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, would impact Kulevi and Georgia as clients of Rosneft.

In a post on social media, Saakashvili recalled that in 2012, together with Azerbaijani partners, he launched the construction of a major oil refinery north of Georgia’s port city of Poti, but the project was halted by the Government of ruling Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili “under Russian orders.”

He warned that the establishment of a “Russian-operated” newly built Kulevi oil refinery posed a “serious threat” to Georgia’s economy and undermined the future prospects of the planned city of Lazika.

“[US] President [Donald] Trump has announced draconian sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil. This will definitely affect Kulevi and Georgia as Rosneft clients. The installation of a Russian enterprise in Kulevi not only catastrophically damages the prospects of Lazika but also poses a grave risk to Georgia’s economy.

“On top of this, the European Union has tightened sanctions against Russian oil and gas, meaning that once again the dictatorship moves against the tide, dragging every Georgian into new chaos and endangering their well-being,” Saakashvili wrote.

The United States recently imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies - Rosneft and Lukoil - as part of a new round of measures targeting the country’s energy sector.