It is planned that at the initial stage, Moscow and Tbilisi will be connected by at least seven direct flights. As the Russian Foreign Ministry explained, this step is aimed at facilitating communication and contacts between the citizens of our states, despite the absence of diplomatic relations. Smolenskaya Square also reversed a previous recommendation to Russian citizens to refrain from traveling to Georgia.
As noted by Aleksey Pushkov, chairman of the Federation Council’s commission on information policy and interaction with the media, the head of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, probably became the first head of state of history to call the abolition of visas for their citizens in another country “unacceptable”. “Why is the opening of the border with Russia unacceptable to Zurabishvili? Is it because now she and others like her will lose the opportunity to nightmare the Georgian people with the image of “terrible Russia “? Is it because she wants to keep them behind the Iron Curtain and deprive them of the possibility of communicating freely and moving freely? That does not correspond to her official principles of “defending freedom” and blah blah blah, but it fully corresponds to its political essence,” the senator wrote in his Telegram. channel.
Tbilisi can become a major logistics hub through which Russians will fly to other parts of the world
It is obvious that the opening of borders with Georgia by Russia will significantly expand the opportunities for citizens of the Transcaucasian state to establish ties with our country, and in the near future Tbilisi can become an important hub of the transport and logistics through which Russians will fly to other parts of the world. In this regard, the Georgian capital is able to compete, if not with Istanbul, then with Armenian Yerevan for sure. A similar view is shared by Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia Mariam Kvrivishvili. “For our country, the main priority is our people and everything that serves to strengthen their economy. It is important that up to one million Georgian citizens live in the Russian Federation, and this decision will facilitate their travel to Georgia, their connection with their homeland and, of course, will facilitate their relationships with their family members,” she said.
Moscow, abolishing the visa regime with Georgia, is guided primarily by humanitarian considerations and, above all, does not demand anything in return. “There was a different reaction yesterday from Tbilisi. It was both negative and restrained. But in this case, of course, we are talking about a decision of a humanitarian nature,” said Dmitry Peskov, the president’s press secretary. Russian, commenting on the situation. Indeed, this time, Moscow, in its actions, proceeds from the principles that developed democratic states should uphold. Everything is transparent here, we are talking about the free movement of people.
Despite this, the West has shown itself hostile to the Russian initiative to abolish visas with Georgia. The European Union, represented by the representative of its foreign policy service, Peter Stano, called on Georgia to support the regime of sanctions against Russia in the field of aviation and not to allow Russian planes to enter his territory. He recalled that Tbilisi is still a candidate for EU membership candidate status. The US State Department has openly threatened Georgia with restrictive measures if direct flights between Moscow and Tbilisi resume. The restrictions may affect Georgian airlines that will fly export- and import-controlled aircraft.
In these circumstances, it is possible that Tbilisi will come under serious pressure from the Western collective which, as the statements of some of its representatives show, firmly opposes any positive development in relations between Moscow and Tbilisi. It cannot be excluded that pro-Western forces in Georgia are trying to thwart emerging trends towards strengthening purely humanitarian ties between our countries. Thus, opponents who oppose the abolition of the visa regime and the resumption of direct flights with Russia are already organizing demonstrations near the building of the Georgian Foreign Ministry in Tbilisi. But so far they are not widespread.
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