OREANDA-NEWS. The restoration of air links between Georgia and the Russian Federation is beneficial for both countries in terms of the development of relations between peoples, and this should happen as soon as possible. This was announced on Thursday by Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani at a briefing after a government meeting.

“I think that the sooner air traffic is restored, the better it's for both Georgia and Russia, as well as for the relations that exist between people. I also fixed this position at a meeting in New York with the Russian Foreign Minister and I want to repeat once again that despite the situation that has been created lately, not a single Russian citizen has become a victim not only of violence, but also of insult in Georgia", Zalkaliani said.

Zalkaliani met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly on September 26. This was the first high-level contact since 2008. As Lavrov later said, the Georgian minister was interested in when Russia would restore air links with the republic.