The first plane from Moscow in four years landed in Tbilisi

The first plane in four years from Moscow landed at the airport in Tbilisi, the flight was performed by the airline “Azimut”.

Before the plane’s arrival in Tbilisi, the waiting hall of Shota Rustaveli Airport was closed, the building was cordoned off by the police, “Dozhd” TV channel reported. When asked about the reasons for the closure, the police answered “no reason”.

As the Telegram channel Paper Kartuli writes, a column of protestors is moving to the Tbilisi airport against the direct air communication between Georgia and Russia. It is also reported that the police blocked the road leading to the airport.

On May 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin lifted the ban on direct flights between Russia and Georgia and canceled the visa regime for Georgian citizens.

Five airlines submitted applications for direct flights between Russia and Georgia. On May 15, the Civil Aviation Agency of Georgia issued the first permission for flights to the country – to the Russian airline “Azimut”. Later permission was received by the Georgian airline Georgian Airways. On May 19, it became known that the Russian airline Red Wings also received permission. The Georgian authorities emphasized that only those airlines that are not under Western sanctions will be allowed to fly to the country.

• The President of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, called the decision of the Russian authorities a provocation and unacceptable against the background of the continuation of the war in Ukraine. At the same time, the Georgian government and the ruling party “Georgian Dream” spoke in favor of the resumption of flights to Russia. It was emphasized that “a million Georgians” suffer from the lack of direct air traffic. The ruling party also stressed that Georgia will not impose sanctions against Russia due to the potential damage to its economy.
• The Georgian opposition, the European Union, and the United States also opposed the restoration of direct air traffic between Georgia and Russia. The EU called on Georgia, which is hoping to become a member of the European bloc, to support the aviation sanctions against Moscow introduced in response to the invasion of Ukraine, namely not to allow its planes to fly to Russia, and Russian planes to Georgia.