Maria Zakharova: The restrictions imposed on the import of beverages from Georgia are targeted; there is no political basis whatsoever

The restrictions imposed on the import of beverages from Georgia are targeted; there is no political basis whatsoever, — Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated.

Maria Zakharova responded to a question about the ban on the import of a number of Georgian beverages into Russia.

According to her, this issue falls within the competence of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing of Russia (“Rospotrebnadzor”).

“The restrictions imposed are targeted. We see how they are trying to create some political factors and engage in speculation from a completely routine procedure. There is nothing to look for here. There is no political basis whatsoever. There are certain requirements that were conveyed to those who were importing this production. I can say that dozens of Georgian companies carry out imports into Russia. Violations were identified only in a few enterprises. All the others continue to operate without problems on our market, which is a priority for Georgia,” Zakharova stated.

For information, Russia announced a ban on the import of products from certain Georgian companies. “Rospotrebnadzor” stated that from 9 October a temporary sanitary measure was introduced in order to suspend the import and circulation of food products in the Russian Federation. The ban affected the following companies: “Teliani Valley”; “Tbilvino”; “Askaneli Brothers”; “Winman”; “Georgian Beer Company”; “Coca-Cola”; “Nabeghlavi”.