Georgia accuses Baltics of punishing neutrality with sanctions

The first deputy speaker of the Georgian parliament, Giorgi Volsky, has accused the Baltic states—Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia—of attempting to draw Georgia into a confrontation with Russia and punishing Tbilisi with sanctions for its refusal to comply.

According to Georgian media cited by Caliber.Az, Volsky claimed that the Baltic countries are pursuing a deliberate strategy aimed at entangling Georgia in a conflict with Moscow in order to deflect security threats from their own region.

“This is their scenario!” Volsky declared. “According to this scenario, they will sometimes impose sanctions, sometimes make loud statements, sometimes come and call our youth to bloodshed—we see this. I don't think Lithuania has any other reason than this dark strategy. They don’t hide it—they talk about it openly.”

Volsky’s remarks came after Lithuania imposed new visa sanctions on 10 Georgian officials. The latest blacklist includes:

• Judges: Nino Galustashvili, Jvebe Nachkebia, Irakli Shvangiridze, and Viktor Metreveli

• Prosecutors: Mari Meshveliani and Natia Tatiashvili

• Prime Minister of Adjara: Sulkhan Tamazashvili

• Georgian Members of Parliament: Mariam Lashkhi and Nino Tsilosani

• Head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau: Razden Kuprashvili

Under the current restrictions, these individuals are banned from entering Lithuania until July 22, 2030. According to the Lithuanian Migration Department, a total of 112 Georgian citizens are now subject to similar visa bans.

Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia were the first to impose sanctions on Georgian officials in response to the government's rejection of the European integration course during mass protests in 2024. Georgian Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili previously commented that the Baltic states have adopted a policy of double standards toward Tbilisi, turning it into a matter of national interest.

By Tamilla Hasanova