As noted by PYOK, it's not every day you see an airline ban a country's president from flying with it... Georgian Airways controversially resuming flights to Russia Georgian Airways (based in Tbilisi, not Atlanta) has just resumed flights to Russia. The airline discontinued flights to Russia as of July 2019. This has nothing to do…
Continue reading: Georgian Airways Bans President Over Russia Comments
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Well the Russian trolls will be along any minute to spew their lies, so let's get in some actual context before Putin's knuckle-dragging fascists show up....
This...
Many people would prefer that Georgia distance itself from Russia and instead have better relations with the west, in hopes of the country maybe joining the European Union one day.
...deserves um, a bit more background.
One of the former Soviet Republics which gained its independence upon the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgia had suffered a long time under the Russians. Like other long-suffering former Soviet nations (Ukraine, Poland, the Baltics, the list goes on...) they've been working to build better lives, all while Russia seeks to re-conquer them. Most Georgians want nothing to do with Russia (they're not idiots, they can see how their future would look with or without Russian overlords -- see Estonia, Ukraine, et all). They want to join the EU, have applied for EU membership, and that's in progress (that's a long process - ask any Ukrainian). Unfortunately, Georgia's government is divided, with many striving to join the EU, and some others staunchly pro-Russian. There have been many demonstrations and other grass-roots political pressures pushing the government to continue, and accelerate, their steps to join the EU; the EU leadership is watching carefully. Of course, this enrages Putin and his trolls. Thankfully, Putin is currently too busy getting his ass kicked in Ukraine to do much about Georgia (otherwise the tanks would have rolled), but that doesn't stop his boot-licking minions from trying their best to suck up the the dictator and stand in the way of Georgia's path towards a better life.
This is just one more example of Putin's dreams of restoring the former USSR empire slipping away. Lets hope Georgia gets their way and continues their integration to the EU. Putin's going to have an accident sooner or later. Not soon enough.
I live in Tbilisi and the flight resumptions have indeed been quite the contentious decision with multiple days of protests at the airport and in front of Parliament. Georgia's relationship with Russia is fairly complex and unfortunately there's still a significant amount of government corruption which benefits from maintaining kind relations with Moscow despite the Georgian populace being overwhelmingly pro-EU and a constitution which mandates EU ascension.
Ben, would you please maintain your usual decent protocol and good manners by addressing a head of state properly, i.e. President Putin? This has nothing to do with your political views, just a diplomatic courtesy.
They want to join EU, but have you asked if EU wanted them to join?
Same thing Ukraine is trying to convince their people, they can join EU to get elected.
If EU or US really wanted to piss Putin, Ukraine would be in EU and NATO by now. We're supplying weapons just enough to not let the war tip to one side. Someone is trying to get Ukraine war torn as long as possible. It's a win-win for governments and lose for the people.
That sukin syn has blood of hundreds of thousand of people on his hands and you are worried about his titles?
Ben, would you please maintain your usual decent protocol and good manners by addressing a head of state properly, i.e. Fuehrer Putin?
Beat it troll. You’re on the wrong side of history. Putin and Hitler are synonymous.
Eskimo, you are just getting dumber day by day
You do know that ascension to EU is a Multi year process that requires the candidate country to completely change laws, political system, economical policies, improve infrastructure and a whole lot of other things? This doesn’t happen in one day! There is also a long negotiation regarding everything above that takes many years. The average time for this process takes around 10 years!
Also how will Ukraine join NATO right now? If they did, the entire bloc will have to declare war with Russia due to Article 5!!
A barbaric monster like Comrade Putin deserves zero diplomatic courtesy because he is anything but a diplomat. He is a blood-thirsty egomaniacal murderer, pure and simple, and shame on you for defending such a piece of garbage.
I'm about 99.9% sure you would salute if UA or DL or AA banned Trump?
Not if he didn't do something that violates their CoC, in order to get banned. Sure Trump's a piece of crap, but not all of us are as ideologically-driven as you.
lol triggered. Why don't you look at some of declassified CIA documents from the 60s and 70s showing US complicity of genocide.
US admitted at committing genocide and you were fine with it. NO one was held responsible no one went to prison. Read the Jakarta Method.
This stinks of reality being distorted by economic interests, such as Russian ones. Sad when airline executives are out of touch with their own country to the extent they ignore an immoral invasion of a free country.
As others have written Georgia and especially Armenia is in a difficult situation, if they should defy Russia, there is no chance for them to resist, Russia has stolen land from Georgia recently and could easily do so again.
Russia does not even need to threat Armenia,it can just remove it's forces and Azerbaijan will invade and take more territory.
- I'm not gonna fly with you
- Well, in that case we'll ban you from flying with us. (Pause....) We're not looking like utter morons, are we?
As soon as you say 'Russian trolls' you show your bias and your words are pointless. We have had enough NATO brainwashing, thank you.
In fact, the Soviet Union annexed parts of Poland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territories_of_Poland_annexed_by_the_Soviet_Union
The Vladimir Pozner game isn't gonna play here.
The US doing bad things doesn't excuse Russia doing the same
Dissident Russians have found Georgia one of their safest havens. Giving them an escape route doesn't seem so bad, though there are issues with money streaming in and pricing Georgians out of their own cities.