Georgia Hails Putin Ending Flight Ban as US, EU Warn on Ties
- Ruling party in Georgia calls Russian action ‘humanitarian’
- US, EU caution against weakening of sanctions on Russia
Irakli Garibashvili
Photographer: Christopher Pike/BloombergGeorgian authorities welcomed a decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin to restore air travel links, even as the US and the European Union urged the Caucasus nation to observe sanctions imposed over the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.
Putin on Wednesday lifted a ban on flights to Georgia and eased visa requirements for its citizens, removing restrictions imposed in 2019 after protests broke out in the capital, Tbilisi, over the government’s ties to Moscow. Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and several ministries hailed the move, though President Salome Zourabichvili called the step a “provocation” by Russia.