Eduard Shevardnadze Hopes Visa Regime To Be Abolished After Signing New Russian-georgian Treaty

The Georgian president hopes that the visa regime would be abolished after signing a new Russia-Georgia treaty. At the press conference in Tbilisi Eduard Shevardnadze expressed an opinion that the issue of lifting the visa regime between Russia and Georgia "won't cause problems" in discussing the draft future framework agreement between the two countries. The visa regime was introduced December 5, 2000 as a temporary measure to ensure security of the Russian borders. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that there was no need for the visa regime between Russia and Georgia if the latter cooperated constructively with Russia in combating terrorism. The signing of the new framework treaty between Georgia and Russia will give a start to the process of normalisation of the Russian-Georgian relations, Eduard Shevardnadze believes.