All news

Georgian-Russian talks will not take place in September - Abashidze

The next round of talks has been postponed to October

TBILISI, September 19. /TASS/. The next round of talks with Grigory Karasin, a member of the Federation Council (the upper house of Russia’s parliament) who heads the Russian delegation at the talks with Georgia in Prague, has been postponed from September to October, special representative of Georgia’s Prime Minister for relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze told TASS on Saturday.

"First of all, I should note that we are observing the situation associated with the spread of the new coronavirus in the world. You know that in a number of countries, including Europe, the so-called second wave of the virus is starting. Karasin and I are trying to find a suitable time, some window to meet in October. Our negotiations will not take place in September," he said.

The Georgian diplomat also commented on the possible restoration of direct flights from Russia, interrupted in July 2019, noting that Moscow has repeatedly made statements about the resumption of flights, but there is no specifics yet. "If there is political will on the part of the Russian leadership, then we are ready to put this issue (the resumption of air traffic - TASS) on the agenda," he concluded.

The last time Abashidze and Karasin met in Prague was in November 2019. The next consultations were planned to be held in March, but due to the outbreak of the pandemic, they were postponed to April, and then to September. The Prague format of negotiations with the participation of Karasin and Abashidze has existed since 2012. For a long time it remains the only direct dialogue between Moscow and Tbilisi.