Russian Foreign Ministry suspends issuing visas to Georgia's citizens

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The Georgian side has to realize that disruption of diplomatic relations is a step that is going to have consequences, REGNUM cites Russian Foreign Ministry representative Andrey Nesterenko to comment at a briefing in Moscow Sep 3, 2008. According to Nesterenkp, Russian Foreign Ministry is today analyzing the situation in which citizens of Georgia are facing problems getting Russian visas.

Speaking of Consulate work in the territory of Georgia, Nesterenko said that acts documenting civil state and other like documents are absolutely acceptable. ''However, what about the visa service, we first have to analyze the situation and come up with concrete measures. Disrupting diplomatic relations and trying to keep everything intact in the field of mutual visits, as if nothing happened — it is unwise to expect that this will be accepted as normal,'' Nesterenko said.

''The Georgian side must have thought of the situation. We don't want to create problems for Georgia's citizens, regarding the situation as anomaly. However, they in Tbilisi must realize that disruption of diplomatic relations is an action that has a price tag,'' Nesterenko commented. He informed that as for today, issuing Russian visas to citizens of Georgia has been suspended. Russian Foreign Ministry is deciding on ways to settle the situation.