Ruling party chairperson: allegations of secret talks for enabling Russia to circumvent sanctions “insulting”

Mamuka Mdinaradze, the ruling Georgian Dream party Executive Secretary, has denied claims by Yuri Shvets, a former Soviet intelligence officer, who on Sunday said Georgia and a number of other countries had held secret talks with the Kremlin to enable Russia to circumvent international sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine.

Responding to comments made by Shvets, Mdinaradze said it was “insulting” to even raise the possibility of such secret negotiations, “especially when it comes to a country [Russia] that has occupied 20% of our country.”

Shvets, a former Soviet intelligence officer, said in a video on his YouTube channel a number of countries from the post-Soviet region and beyond had held secret talks with Moscow and agreed to help it circumvent sanctions imposed last week as a response to the invasion. He identified the countries as Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Iran.

In comments about Georgia, the former intelligence professional claimed it was possible Tbilisi would become a hub connecting Russian air routes to their destinations by rebranding Russian-originated cargo as Georgian-produced.

Shvets also said about 200 Russian companies had already been registered in Georgia with the aim of enabling such operations.