Ukraine war: Georgia cannot afford to impose sanctions on Russia, says PM Irakli Garibashvili

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said on Wednesday (May 24) that his government cannot afford to impose sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war as the sanctions would devastate Georgia's economy. Addressing the Qatar Economic Forum, Prime Minister Garibashvili said, "Not only would we harm Georgia, but we would also devastate our economy and jeopardise the interests of our country and our people if we were to impose any form of economic sanctions on Russia," the news agency AFP reported.

Garibashvili estimated bilateral trade with Russia is worth about $1 billion a year.

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A reminder of the Russo-Georgian war

Prime Minister Garibashvili has been facing international criticism for not imposing sanctions on Russia (for its invasion of Ukraine). But he has defended his country's reluctance to take action against its neighbour.

Reminding the world about the 2008 Russo-Georgian war, Garibashvili criticised the international community for not taking action, including sanctions.

"Where's the logic? Our war was not a war and the Ukrainian war is a war. Well, I have to say that we were quite disappointed that business as usual continued with Russia after the 2008 war," he said during the Qatar Economic Forum on Wednesday.

"The result of that war, a devastating war, is that 20 per cent of our territory was taken over by Russia. Russia built two military bases on our historic lands," the Georgian prime minister added, AFP reported

Nobody knows how Ukraine war will end: Georgian PM

Garibashvili also said on Wednesday that nobody knew how the ongoing war in Ukraine would end. He pointed out that there are not enough efforts from the international community to take proper measures to encourage consultation, to encourage peace talks.

Last Saturday (May 20), Georgia announced that it was resuming direct flights to Russia, drawing criticism from Ukraine and the European Union (EU). The decision came after Moscow lifted a flight ban in a significant warming of ties with Georgia.

Taking to Twitter, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko said, "The world is isolating Russia to force it to stop the war, but Georgia is welcoming Russian airlines and sending its own to Moscow. All while 20% of Georgian territory remains occupied by Russia with impunity."

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