Georgia called the condition for the resumption of direct flights with Russia Russia lifts the ban from May 15

Georgia, after Russia's decision to resume direct flights, will allow flights by Russian airlines, but only those carriers that are not under Western sanctions, said Georgia's Deputy Economy Minister Mariam Kvrivishvili.

According to her, Tbilisi has not yet issued permission for direct flights between the two countries, as it has not yet received a notification from Moscow. “We clearly fix our position that not a single airline that fell under sanctions will operate in Georgia,” Kvrivishvili said ( quoted by RIA Novosti).

She expressed confidence that the restoration of direct flights with RUSSIA would not affect relations with the EU , and announced the country's "clear choice" to become part of the "European family", writes TASS . The official noted that the resumption of flights positively contributes to the relations of Georgians with their homeland. According to Kvrivishvili, up to 1 million Georgian citizens live in Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered to lift the ban for Russian airlines on flights to Georgia from May 15, 2023 (in force since 2019), and the Foreign Ministry withdrew the recommendation to Russians to refrain from traveling to this country. Putin also canceled the visa regime for Georgian citizens.

The Russian Ministry of Transport reported that after the ban was lifted, Russian airlines would fly between Moscow and Tbilisi seven times a week.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili criticized Moscow's decision. She called the resumption of direct flights and the abolition of the visa regime unacceptable due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine . At the same time, he welcomed the abolition of visas by the Georgian Foreign Ministry. “This decision, seen precisely through a humanitarian prism, is welcomed by any responsible government,” said Foreign Minister Ilya Darchiashvili (quoted by Sputnik Georgia).

Russia suspended direct flights to Georgia in June 2019. This was preceded by protests in Tbilisi, which began after the scandal with State Duma deputy from the Communist Party Sergei Gavrilov, who sat in the speaker's chair during the opening of the meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy in the Georgian Parliament. The Georgian opposition considered this unacceptable.

The usa , CANADA , Great Britain and all EU countries closed their airspace to Russian airlines in March 2022, after the start of the military operation in Ukraine. In addition, the Russian airlines Aeroflot, Rossiya and Ural Airlines fell under the sanctions of London. The restrictions imposed involve freezing their assets. Aeroflot, along with Utair and Azur Air, has been under US Department of Commerce sanctions since early April. For 180 days, companies were deprived of EXPORT privileges.

The EU called on Georgia to join the sanctions against Russia in the aviation sector and not to resume direct flights. Tbilisi has stated that it is complying with European restrictive measures.