Karasin Says Russia Thinks about Visa-Free Regime with Georgia
By Tea Mariamidze
Thursday, October 11
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Grigory Karasin stated that Russia thinks of introducing a visa-free regime for Georgians.
Karasin told Georgia’s Public Broadcaster that prospects of Russia-Georgia visa-free regime depend only on these two counties.
“If we deal with security problems and issues related to the fight against terrorism, we will soon be able to achieve a very simplified regime and the even visa-free regime,” he said, adding that Russia wants a good relationship with Georgia.
“We want to make sure that our countries have perfect diplomatic relations, but if it does not work out, then we should wait for a proper moment. We think and work on visa issues, "Russian envoy stated in Geneva, where the 45th round of Geneva International Discussions (GID) took place on October 9-10.
Karasin also noted that Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) meetings in Gali and Ergneti, which have not been successful lately, should continue.
“These mechanisms are products of the GID… We are slowly moving to talk the direct dialogue between Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia with each other. We want this direct dialogue to be more constructive and have more concrete results for the population. The possibilities for this really exist,” Karasin stated, believing that breakaway regions of Georgia and official Tbilisi may one day establish dialogue and reach an agreement.
In December 2000, Russia introduced a visa regime with Georgia and in 2006 it carried out a mass deportation of Georgians from Russia.
After the Russia-Georgia war in 2008, Georgian citizens were only awarded a visa to travel to Russia if they had been invited by very close relatives.
Georgia’s former government annulled visas for Russian tourists in 2011, however, Russia maintains its complicated procedures until now.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs David Dondua says Geneva International Discussions is a very important format, as it “directly reacts to everyday provocations that take place at the occupied territories of Georgia.”
“This format should not be lost. There really is a danger of escalation of the situation. The Geneva format has contributed to the fact that the situation is more or less stable but it does not mean that today there is peace in our region and in our country,” he added.
The envoy thinks that IPRM meetings should be normalized as they used to work more or less good in the stabilization of the tense situation between Georgia, Russia and the occupied territories.
“Let's hope that the participants will be sensible and will get back to this mechanism. We do not have any conditions. The work should be continued as it was going on before. We must work on the principles that were agreed ten years ago and this period worked more or less well…We call on everyone to work without any pretension and politicization. As soon as they began to put forth preconditions, political issues and blackmail, the work of the mechanism worsened,” he stressed.
Geneva discussions, which represent the only format of an ongoing international dialogue between Georgia and Russia, are usually held with Co-Chairmanship of the EU, UN and OSCE, and with the participation of Georgia, the Russian Federation and the USA. The representatives of Georgia’s breakaway regions, Sokhumi and Tskhinvali occupation regimes, also attend the Working Groups.
As for the IPRM, it was created in February 2009 as a result of the Geneva Discussions that followed the 2008 conflict in Georgia. The meetings are an opportunity to identify potential risks and problems facing the local community, follow up on incidents, and exchange information.
