Visa-free travel with Russia is not Georgia's strategic task - Tbilisi
TBILISI. Dec 20 (Interfax) - Georgian State Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Alexi Petriashvili welcomes the readiness of Russian President Vladimir Putin to consider the possible cancellation of entry visas for Georgian citizens.
"We can only welcome the possible cancellation of entry visas for Georgian citizens declared by the Russian president but I must say that such decisions of the Russian administration will not have any effect on issues, which are strategic for Georgia," Petriashvili told reporters on Friday.
He listed amongst Georgia's strategic priorities "the restoration of its territorial integrity, de-occupation of the country and the policy of integration with the European Union and NATO."
Russia is prepared to return to visa-free travel with Georgia, Putin said at a press conference on Thursday.
"I think we could certainly agree to return to visa-free travel. This needs to be thought out well on an expert level. This would be a very good step toward normalizing relations between our countries," he said.
The cancellation of visas would promote communication among people and help Georgian enterprises operating on Russian markets. He said this would provide conditions for "fundamental and definitive normalization of our relations."
"My personal attitude toward the incumbent Georgian leadership has changed," Putin said. "We see messages that the new Georgian leadership is sending."
