Georgia has promised not to accept "shadow fleet" vessels.

Georgian authorities have pledged not to accept tankers linked to Russia.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," in December 2025, the European Commission admitted that Georgia could face a complete suspension of its visa-free regime with the European Union. Due to the "systemic and targeted nature of the country's democratic rollback," Brussels is prepared to implement a new mechanism against it, which comes into force on December 30, 2025.

In November 2025, the European Commission published its 2025 enlargement report. According to the document, Georgia has made no progress toward joining the European Union, and its candidate status remains only nominal.

Georgian authorities have promised not to accept Russian tankers into their maritime terminals, European Commission spokesperson Siobhan McGarry said at a briefing in Brussels. "Georgia has informed us that oil tankers belonging to the shadow fleet will no longer be able to call at its ports," Interfax quotes the spokesperson as saying. Tbilisi also promised to stop re-exporting Russian oil, McGarry clarified.

The EC official explained that the decision is due to Europe's concerns about the actions of the Georgian authorities, which led to violations of the European sanctions regime. McGarry added that the EC will closely monitor the situation. "We will not hesitate to take a firm stand against any entity that undermines the impact of our sanctions," noted Siobhan McGarry.

It should be noted that in January 2026, Georgia imported $15.2 million worth of Russian oil. Russia became Georgia's sole oil supplier. In 2025, the country purchased oil from Russia ($95.8 million), Azerbaijan ($1.8 million), and the Netherlands ($2,900), according to a RIA Novosti analysis of Georgian customs data and the Comtrade platform.