2017-02-08
On February 7, 2017, a meeting between the Georgian Prime Minister's Special Representative for Relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze and Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin was held in Prague under the Georgia-Russia Informal Dialogue.
At the beginning of the meeting, Zurab Abashidze spoke of flagrant human rights violations in Georgia's occupied territories, emphasizing the Tskhinvali occupation regime's unlawful decision to detain Giorgi Giunashvili a few days ago, which prompted an outcry of protest in Georgia and the international community alike.
In this context, the role of the Geneva International Talks as the main format for Georgia-Russia relations and discussions on Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali Region was emphasized.
The issues on the Prague format agenda were discussed during the meeting, including a summary of trade and economic relations between the countries in 2016 and plans for 2017.
It was pointed out that, since the launch of Georgia-Russia dialogue in 2013, Georgia exported 850 million USD worth of goods to the Russian market. Progress is evident in air and land freight transport, and the number of Russian tourists in Georgia has increased significantly. Seven Georgian citizens serving long sentences in Russia's prison for espionage were freed.
Zurab Abashidze confirmed that, as early as the last year, the Georgian side finalized the documents stemming from the 2011 Agreement between the Government of Georgia and the Government of the Russian Federation on Key Principles of Monitoring Mechanisms for Customs Administration and Trade in Goods. Currently, Georgia is expecting Russia's readiness to commence the implementation phase.
According to Grigory Karasin, the Russian side, together with the Swiss colleagues, will try to step up work on the documents related to the said agreement.
According to the Russian side, work seeking to simplify visa-related procedures for Georgia's citizens is underway.
The date for the next meeting in Prague will be determined later.