EU pressuring Tbilisi impose sanctions on Russia, Georgian speaker says

The European Union is demanding that Georgia impose sanctions on Russia if it wants to maintain visa-free travel with the bloc, Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili has claimed.

He told reporters that Brussels is pressuring Tbilisi to align with the EU's sanctions policy toward Russia, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

“They tell us that if we want visa-free travel, we must impose sanctions on Russia, in other words, commit suicide. If we destroy ourselves, who will travel visa-free to the European Union? Let them explain that to us,” he said.

According to him, the EU is asking Georgia to ruin itself by imposing sanctions on Russia and aligning with the EU’s visa policy.

“We will not destroy our country, despite Brussels wanting to turn visas into a political weapon,” he added.

Earlier, Georgia’s Foreign Ministry announced that talks between Georgian and EU representatives on the visa-free regime and related issues will take place in Brussels on June 11.

The meeting will be the first of its kind in several years following a deterioration in relations between Tbilisi and the European Union.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov