Georgian president Salome Zoirabichvili on Wednesday urged the country’s authorities to call the national security council meeting and discuss imposing visa restrictions on Russian nationals amid the Kremlin’s latest decision to lift visa regime and travel ban with Georgia.
In her press briefing after describing the Kremlin’s move as “provocative”, Zourabichvili claimed accepting the decision could harm national interests and Georgia’s obtaining the European Union membership candidate status by the end of this year.
“This is not only an issue that opposes the obtaining of the candidate status, that also makes me think, but it, first of all, opposes the interests of Georgia, the dignity of Georgia.
“We must know where this country stands, which is occupied, whose territories are occupied, and which is in solidarity with our Ukrainian friends. This is our position, and we must be loyal to this position, we must be there to the end. This is the request of the public, and I am sure that if it happens differently, and I have great hopes that it will not happen, the public will also have a response to it”, Zourabichvili said.
Russia revoked direct flights with Georgia in 2019, following mass protests in Tbilisi sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament, while Russia had had a visa regime with the country since 2000.
Georgia imposed visa restrictions on Russia following the latter’s invasion of the country in 2008. However, the restrictions were removed by former president Mikheil Saakashvili in March 2012.
