Yuri Luzhkov: Georgia will feel much better after breakaway of Abkhazia and South Ossetia

Yuri Luzhkov, Moscow’s ex-Mayor, who is visiting Tbilisi, has talked about Georgia’s disputed regions and noted that Georgia itself will feel much better if those regions break away.

“I still believe that Abkhazia is an absolutely different country – people are different there. And it’s the same with Ossetia. Of course there is some feeling of nostalgia and anger, but I still think that, after the breakaway of those regions, Georgia itself is going to feel much better in future,” Yuri Luzhkov told the Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB).

Yuri Luzhkov arrived in Georgia 4 days ago. He crossed into the country without any problems, despite the fact that he had previously travelled to Abkhazia from Russia, thus violating Georgia’s Law on Occupied Territories.

“We crossed the border. All our documents were checked as prescribed by standard procedure. The border guards didn’t even ask us anything. And even if they did, what would they have asked? We arrived as part of a tourist group. I know about the occupation law, but I think that everything that was in the past, all those disagreements, should remain in the past,” said Luzhkov.

As Moscow’s ex-Mayor pointed out, the Russian market was particularly important for Georgian wine and both countries should think of the future.

The opinions, expressed in the article, reproduce the author’s terminology and views and not necessarily reflect the position of the editorial staff