Russia restores visa-free access for Georgians, lifts flight ban

Russia on Wednesday restored visa-free travel for citizens of Georgia and lifted a ban on direct flights between the two countries imposed in 2019, according to a decree published on a Russian government website.
The move represents a sharp warming in relations between Moscow and Tbilisi, which have been among the most strained in the former Soviet Union, but which have improved in recent years.
Russia allows citizens of most former Soviet republics visa-free access but imposed a visa regime on Georgians in 2000, citing the risk of terrorism in the North Caucasus region. Moscow banned direct flights to Georgia in 2019, after anti-Russian protests.
Georgia allows Russians visa-free access and full work rights for up to a year, which has made the country one of the main destinations for Russians who have left their country since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Moscow and Tbilisi have had no formal diplomatic relations since 2008, when they fought a brief war over South Ossetia, a Russian-backed breakway region of Georgia.