In response to Vladimir Putin’s decision to restore direct flights to Georgia and lift the visa policy for Georgian citizens, the US State Department said that instead of all this, the Georgian people “would probably prefer that Putin withdraw Russian troops from 20 percent of the Russian-occupied territory of Georgia” .
In an interview with VOA, a State Department spokesman says now is not the time to get closer to Russia. If direct flights between Russia and Georgia are restored, he said, they will be concerned that companies at Georgian airports could face the risk of sanctions for servicing aircraft subject to export-import controls.
“All of Western society has distanced itself from this cruel regime — now is not the time to intensify interaction with Russia,” the State Department said.
On May 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a document on the abolition of the visa policy for citizens of Georgia and the resumption of direct flights between Russia and Georgia.
The visa system between Russia and Georgia has been operating unilaterally since 2000, and direct flights have been discontinued since July 2019.
