Gotsiridze: Russia has effectively declared an embargo on products of several Georgian companies

Former President of the National Bank, opposition politician Roman Gotsiridze assessed Russia's temporary ban on imports of products of some Georgian companies. According to him, by banning the import of several food product brands, Russia has effectively declared an embargo on us.

Gotsiridze notes that it is no longer possible to import wine into Russia, including the products of the main Georgian wine-producing companies. The import of "Nabeghlavi" is also banned, and "Coca-Cola" has been banned on sanitary grounds. According to him, bacteria and insects were found in "Coca-Cola."

According to the politician, what happened is the result of the criminal policy of the Georgian government. In his words, "You will stand on your knees before Russia, it will demand that you crawl, no matter how you fulfill Russia's orders, in the end it will never be satisfied and will always demand more and more."

Gotsiridze recalled that many years ago Onishchenko banned the import of "Borjomi" on a similar sanitary pretext. According to him, "Borjomi" has not been banned yet because it belongs to Russians, though they may get to that too, and then move on to banning wine, fruit, citrus, greens and, in fact, everything. Gotsiridze views this as a political weapon in Russia's hands, just like Russian gas and electricity.

According to him, the Georgian government failed to fulfill something for Russia, probably because it is caught between two fires. Gotsiridze says Russia was being helped to bypass sanctions by Georgia. He also said that the European Union sanctioned four companies operating in Georgia, and the United States sanctioned one company over its relations with Iran. The Kulevi port was also sanctioned; it has been given a six-month deadline and had imported Russian oil worth about 70 million dollars.

According to Gotsiridze, "Georgian Dream" does not fulfill any of Russia's demands. In his words, Russia demands the maximum, and sometimes the impossible, for example, the recognition of Abkhazia. Gotsiridze considers this the result of the government's treacherous, capitulationist policy.

Russia has imposed a temporary restriction on the import of products of some Georgian companies. According to a document dated October 9, from October 9, 2026, temporary sanitary measures were introduced in the Russian Federation to halt the import and circulation of food products.

The ban concerns the following companies: "Teliani Valley", "Tbilghvino", "Brothers Askanelebi", "Weinmann", "Georgian Beer Company", "Coca-Cola" and "Nabeghlavi".