Georgian finance minister: no need to revise visa rules with Russia
"The existing control mechanisms fully respond to the challenges that the country faces - therefore, at this stage, I personally do not see the need to review the visa regime with Russia", Khutsishvili said. Photo: ministry of finance
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Georgian finance minister Lasha Khutsishvili on Monday responded to a statement by the president of the country Salome Zourabichvili on the possibility of reviewing Georgia's "fairly liberal" visa rules with Russia, saying there was “no need” for a review “at this stage”.
The existing control mechanisms fully respond to the challenges that the country faces - therefore, at this stage, I personally do not see the need to review the visa regime with Russia", Khutsishvili said.
He also added in case the existing control mechanisms proved inadequate for ensuring security, amendments to visa rules could be considered in the future.
Zourabichvili, who is in Moldova on an official visit, said the accelerated entry of Russian citizens to Georgia on the backdrop of the war in Ukraine was "indeed a challenge".
“The main thing is for the public to be sure that all control mechanisms are used and that there is no danger", she said.
About 20,000 Russian citizens have entered Georgia since February 24, compared to 40,000 in the same period in 2019, Vakhtang Gomelauri, the Interior Minister of Georgia, said on Wednesday in response to rumours about “unprecedented level” influx of Russian citizens into Georgia over the recent days on the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The number of Russian citizens entering the territory of Georgia over the recent days is in the pre-pandemic range, Georgia’s Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili said on Monday.
The Georgian interior ministry on Friday said the flow of Russian nationals across Georgian borders had “significantly decreased” over the past two days, following the recently announced partial mobilisation by the Kremlin to recruit at least 300,000 for its war in Ukraine, which pushed many in the country to flee to evade military service.
Medea Janiashvili, the Acting Head of the Georgian National Tourism Administration, on Thursday responded to a study by Transparency International Georgia, which had noted “significant acceleration” in the rate of visitors to Georgia from Russia in 2022, by saying the number of Russian citizens among visitors had dropped by 52 percent compared to the same period in 2019.