(Tbilisi) A Russian airliner arrived in Georgia on Friday, a first since 2019 in this Caucasian country, where the opposition perceives the restoration of air links with Russia as a danger to its European aspirations.
The flight, which departed from Moscow and operated by Azimuth Airlines, landed in Tbilisi at 1:17 p.m. local time (5:17 a.m. Eastern Time).
In front of the airport, a hundred demonstrators gathered against the resumption of flights. Several display Ukrainian and Georgian flags.
“Russian plane, fuck you,” says a poster held by a protester, using a slogan emblematic of the resistance of the Ukrainian army to the Russian invasion of February 24, 2022.
At least six demonstrators were arrested by police deployed on the spot, according to Elene Khoshtaria, leader of the opposition Droa party at the initiative of the mobilizations against this measure.
Russian President Vladimir Putin took the surprise decision last week to restore flights between the two countries, banned in 2019 in response to anti-Moscow movements in Georgia.
In response, the Georgian opposition called for demonstrations at the capital’s airport.
“When I see my country slipping into Russian orbit, all I feel is bitterness and anger,” says a young history student, Lacha Sigoua, interviewed this week by AFP.
“We can’t just watch Georgia go back to its old ways with Russia as it waged an atrocious war against Ukraine,” he said.
” Treason ”
The country has a complicated relationship with its former Soviet-era overlord. A short but bloody war broke out between the two neighbors in 2008, against a backdrop of tensions linked to Georgia’s desire to get closer to the West.
At the end of the conflict, Moscow recognized the independence of two separatist territories in northern Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and set up military bases there.
The resumption of flights, accompanied by a measure allowing Georgians since May 15 to stay in Russia without a visa for stays of less than 90 days – except for professional stays – is once again fueling divisions.
“We will not let them operate in Georgia,” opponent Elene Khoshtaria told AFP, saying the ruling Georgian Dream party is guilty of “treason”.
The country’s president, the pro-European Salome Zurabishvili, also criticized this “new provocation” by Russia.
Conversely to the President, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibachvili welcomed the resumption of flights, specifying that only Russian companies and aircraft exempt from Western sanctions would be authorized to operate in Georgia.
“It is only a question of economic and trade relations,” he assured.
“Pragmatism”
Critics say the government is jeopardizing Georgia’s EU membership by cooperating with the Kremlin.
This country of around 4 million inhabitants, bordering the Black Sea, submitted a joint application with Ukraine and Moldova, shortly after the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
In June, the leaders of the Union granted official candidate status to Kyiv and Chisinau, but made that of Tbilisi conditional on several reforms (justice, electoral system, freedom of the press)
Political analyst Ghia Nodia believes that the leaders of the Georgian Dream party are “practically sabotaging integration” with the EU.
Mr. Garibachvili brushed aside these criticisms and assured last week that his government was guided by “strategic patience and political pragmatism”.
The ruling party says it supports requests to join the EU, but also NATO, a desire for integration enshrined in the national constitution and supported according to polls by 85% of the population.
However, “the EU wants a democratic Georgia”, recalls Mr. Nodia. “That’s why the ruling party, whose sole objective is to stay in power, sees the West as its natural enemy and autocratic Russia as a good partner. »