20:00, 11 September 2010

Residents of pre-border districts of Russia and Georgia hope for simplified border crossing

Opening of the "Kazbegi-Verkhni Lars" border check point, March 1, 2010. Photo by the "Caucasian Knot"

In order to cross the Russian-Georgian border through the "Kazbegi-Verkhni Lars" check point, Georgian citizens need Russian visas issued by the Swiss Embassy in Tbilisi. According to one of Georgian passenger forwarders, it prevents to increase passenger traffic. Residents on both sides of the border see a need to simplify the procedure of crossing the border.

Currently, neither customs officers nor frontier guards issue visas at the Russian check point "Verkhni Lars"; therefore, only CIS citizens may pass through, as the member-states of the Commonwealth have a visa-free treaty.

Citizens of Georgia can receive Russian visas only in the Embassy of Switzerland in Tbilisi. At the same time, Georgia moves no conditions for crossing the border through the "Kazbegi" check point: it is enough to pay 40 US dollars for a visa to stay in Georgia for a month. It refers both citizens of Russia and of other countries.

Author: Beslan Kmuzov

Source: CK correspondent