EU calls on Georgia to ‘take more steps’ to prevent evasion of Russian sanctions
The EU has confirmed that it sent a letter to the Georgian government calling on Tbilisi to ‘take more steps’ to ensure that Russia does not circumvent sanctions.
On Thursday, the EU’s spokesperson for foreign and security affairs, Anita Hipper, confirmed to opposition leaning TV Formula that the Georgian government had received a letter from the EU regarding the circumvention of sanctions. The letter was penned by EU Special Representative David O’Sullivan, Hipper said.
‘We confirm that a letter has been sent to the Georgian authorities. This concerns Georgia's commitments to stop sanctions circumvention. We are working with all countries in this regard. This is part of our global activities’, Hipper said.
‘We are still awaiting a response from the Georgian authorities and call on them to take more steps to ensure that Russia does not circumvent our sanctions. Sanctions work, and that is why Russia is desperately trying to circumvent them’.
O’Sullivan’s letter was published by a number of media outlets in the country earlier on Thursday. In it, O’Sullivan thanks the government for ‘steps already taken not to allow the circumvention of EU sanctions’.
He requested that Georgia ban ‘all the re-export of EU-origin items’ identified as Economically Critical Goods that ‘Russia is desperately seeking to procure to support its war effort’.
‘These are sanctioned items that could support Russia’s industrial base’, the letter read.
‘While Georgia is not a major re-exporter of these goods, countries in the region already found a way to address this issue, and there is a risk that Georgia becomes an alternative illicit trading route for these items.’
Several Georgian officials and members of the ruling Georgian Dream party touted the letter as a success of its policies in enforcing sanctions — as opposed to opposition claims that Georgia had become a ‘black hole’ for sanction evasions. Those include President Mikheil Kavelashvili, MP Giorgi Volski, Foreign Minister Maka Botchorishvili, and Parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili.
Papuashvili criticised Brussels while addressing the contents of the letter, saying that O’Sullivan’s letter was symptomatic of a ‘bipolar disorder in Brussels’.
‘Is Georgia a commendable country in terms of compliance with sanctions? And if so, why is Brussels directly funding disinformation against Georgia?! So, this shows us not double standards, but bipolar disorder in Brussels’, Papuashvili said, according to pro-government media outlet Imedi, before going on to claim that the husband of the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas ‘is engaged in business with Russia’.
OC Media
