In 2022, the export of Georgian wine to Russia increased by 23% and amounted to 161 million USD. The Russian market holds 64% in Georgian wine exports, which is the highest figure since 2013, after the return of Georgian wine to the Russian market.
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According to Transparency International Georgia’s assessment, Georgia's economic dependence on Russia is dangerous, since after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has repeatedly used economic leverage against Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova and other countries. In 2006, Russia stopped supplying natural gas and electricity to Georgia, then effectively banned the export of products from Georgia to Russia, and at the end of the same year began to deport Georgian citizens. After the events of June 20, 2019, flights from Russia to Georgia were banned.
“After the Russian war in Ukraine at the end of February 2022, the strict sanctions imposed on Russia lead to a decrease in its economy, which also affects the countries that have close economic relations with it,” states Transparency International Georgia and recommends Georgian government to do more to reduce trade with Russia and Actively and urgently start work on signing free trade agreements with all strategic partners with whom we do not yet have such an agreement.
The non-governmental organization believes that subsidies from the state budget (grant, preferential credit, etc.) should not be given to such businesses that increase economic dependence on Russia.
Last year, Georgia's economic dependence on Russia increased in other directions as well. In 2022, Georgia received about 3.6 billion US dollars of income from Russia through remittances, tourism and goods export, which is 3 times more than the income received from Russia from the same sources in 2021. This indicator even exceeds income received from Russia in 2019, before the Covid pandemic, by 2 times. The growth is mainly due to the jump-like increase in remittances.
