Parliament Committee Chair says Russia lifting flight ban, visa requirements for Georgians designed to “create obstacles” for European integration
Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday responded to Russia’s move to lift its ban on flights with Georgia and visa requirements for the country’s citizens. Photo: Maka Botchorishvili’s Twitter
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Maka Botchorishvili, the Chair of the European Integration Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Wednesday responded to the Russian Government lifting its ban on flights with Georgia and visa requirements for citizens of the country by saying the moves were designed to “create obstacles” for Georgia’s European integration.
Published on Wednesday, the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decree introduced 90-day visa-free travel for Georgian citizens starting from May 15, while another decree resumed air travel between the two countries.
Botchorishvili said the development was part of a longer-term policy for the objective, and slammed a part of domestic opposition who had alleged a role of the Georgian Dream ruling party in the decision by saying the Georgian Government could not be held responsible for Moscow’s actions.
It is incomprehensible to place the blame for Putin’s decisions on the Georgian Government”, Botchorishvili said, before criticising the opposition for “harming state interests” amid “serious challenges” and a “complicated geopolitical situation” for the country.
She alleged the opposition was “either harming the national interests intentionally” or was unable to “properly realise” the challenges Georgia faced on the backdrop of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
We need to act prudently when it comes to such decisions by Russia”, the lawmaker added.
Flights between Russia and Georgia had been suspended by the former in response to rallies in the Georgian capital in 2019, sparked by the incident in which a Russian MP took the seat of the Georgian Parliament Speaker in the lawmaking body during an international religious conference, amid the ongoing occupation of Georgian territories by Russia.
The previous Georgian Government introduced a visa regime with Russia following the latter’s invasion of Georgia in 2008, before the former President Mikheil Saakashvili revoked it unilaterally in 2012.