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Russia will put the issue of granting visas of the European Union to citizens of Abkhazia and South Ossetia

10.02.2017

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Grigory Karasin welcomed the EU's decision to provide Georgia visa-free regime.

"Declaring the EU visa regime for Georgia is a positive fact. On this issue over the past five years Georgia had been working and fulfills all the requirements of the European Union. We hope that the EU will remove restrictions in respect of citizens of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. As Europe they do not provide visas, arguing that they are not citizens of Georgia, but this approach is not humane, "- said Karasin on Tuesday to the Georgian journalists before the meeting in Prague with the special representative of the Georgian Prime Minister for relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze.

According to him, the Russian side will raise the issue to the European Union to lift restrictions for the citizens of Abkhazia and South Ossetia for European visas.

"As for Georgia and Russia we have nothing against the visa regime for Georgian citizens, but we do not have diplomatic relations, and the two topics are interrelated in this direction need to work", - Karasin said.