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There is progress in Russia-Georgia talks on visa abolition

MOSCOW, December 21, (ITAR-TASS). Russia is set to restore diplomatic relations with Georgia, Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said.

“Diplomatic relations between Russia and Georgia have not been restored yet, although we are ready for this,” he said.

The talks between the two countries demonstrated “certain progress” in the work towards abolishing visa regulations, Karasin said.

“We should make efforts for the travel of the two countries’ citizens to become maximally free,” he said. “We will focus on this task with a redoubled zeal. But we will not forestall the pace of this work.”

“Now Russian-Georgian relations are on the right track,” the diplomat said, adding that for the past year he had had four meetings with Georgian prime minister’s special envoy for improving relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze. “Abashidze is well known in Russia. This is a person who has a very good name, a serious and even-minded diplomat.”

Russia and Georgia had been conducting talks in different areas, but they did not touch on Abkhazia and South Ossetia. “Here the two countries’ positions differ essentially,” Karasin said.

“The problem of passenger traffic remains one of the most pressing in Russian-Georgian relations,” he said. “Now we have flights between such cities as Moscow, St. Petersburg, Batumi and Tbilisi. Now these are charter flights. We do our utmost to make these flights regular. This work is close to completion.”

“For this year the relations between Russia and Georgia have become clearer,” he said, adding that after the change of power in Georgia, Russia’s attitude to that country “is returning onto a normal track.

The work towards opening regular flights between Russian and Georgian cities is close to completion.

“The problem of passenger traffic remains one of the most pressing in Russian-Georgian relations,” he said. “Now we have flights between such cities as Moscow, St. Petersburg, Batumi and Tbilisi. Now these are charter flights. We do our utmost to make these flights regular. This work is close to completion.

Terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall

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