Air Freight News

First Russian airline lands in Georgia after Putin lifts ban

Georgia received the first commercial airliner from Russia in four years after President Vladimir Putin ordered the restoration of direct flights with the aspiring European Union member state.

An Azimuth Airline plane from Moscow touched down at Tbilisi International Airport on Friday. 

Georgia’s government welcomed Putin’s decision this month to lift the ban and ease visa requirements for its citizens, though critics lambasted the move and President Salome Zourabichvili called it a “provocation.” The US and the EU urged Georgia to observe sanctions imposed over Russia’s war on Ukraine.

On Tuesday, Georgian Airways received permission from the nation’s civil aviation service to start flights to Russia from May 20. Peter Stano, the EU’s lead spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy, said the same day that the bloc regretted Tbilisi’s decision to resume flights, which raised “concerns” about Georgia’s EU path and the country’s commitment to aligning with its foreign policy declarations. 

Small groups of protesters gathered outside the airport after an opposition leader called for a demonstration against the resumption of flights, saying it dented the country’s chances of joining the European bloc.

“We will not end up in the EU with Russian planes,” Helen Khoshtaria, leader of the Droa party, said earlier in the week.

Ministers have sought to cultivate links with the Kremlin even as tensions remain over two separatist regions that Russia has occupied since a brief war in 2008. Georgia has also been confronted with an influx of Russians fleeing the war since Putin ordered the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. 

The thaw in relations between the governments in Tbilisi and Moscow has stoked divisions within the nation of 3.7 million, where anti-Russian protesters accuse the authorities of jeopardizing the country’s longstanding efforts to join the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Although Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has condemned Russia’s “unjustified” aggression against Ukraine, his government hasn’t imposed sanctions on Russia and has refused to provide military aid to Kyiv.

Bloomberg
Bloomberg

{afn_job_title}

© Bloomberg
The author’s opinion are not necessarily the opinions of the American Journal of Transportation (AJOT).

Similar Stories

Pakistan airlines’ jet seized in Malaysia for unpaid dues

A Boeing Co. 777 jet operated by Pakistan International Airlines Corp. was impounded on May 29 in Kuala Lumpur over unpaid charges to a leasing company, forcing the carrier to…

View Article
https://www.ajot.com/images/uploads/article/AIB_AtlasBoxes.jpg
Tower Cold Chain announces product upgrade for the airline and railway sector
View Article
https://www.ajot.com/images/uploads/article/Lothar_Moehle.jpg
Cargo iQ collaborates with FIATA and ASA to drive air cargo standardization
View Article
https://www.ajot.com/images/uploads/article/comac-c919.jpg
China jet to rival Airbus, Boeing makes first commercial flight
View Article
https://www.ajot.com/images/uploads/article/Texel_Air_Aircraft.png
CPaT continues partnership with Texel Air with Texel Air NZ
View Article
Singapore Air, Garuda to deepen ties and grow regional routes

Singapore Airlines Ltd. and PT Garuda Indonesia are seeking to deepen ties with a commercial pact to coordinate on fares and flight schedules, the carriers announced Monday.

View Article