© Photo: Maria Novoselova / Vestnik Kavkaza
The Georgian opposition is protesting against the arrival of a Black Sea cruise ship from Sochi in Batumi. The opposition believes that the cruise was launched in circumvention of the sanctions.
Today, Astoria Grande cruise ship for the first time moored in Batumi port as part of the Black Sea voyage from Sochi to Türkiye. In Georgia, the passengers of the ship spend the day, in the evening, the ship will continue on the route. The ship will stop in Batumi on a regular basis.
The ship is registered by the company from the Seychelles, sails under the flag of Palau, an archipelago in Micronesia, and is serviced by a Turkish company. Astoria Grande is not subject to any sanctions. Maritime Transport Agency of Georgia earlier assured that sanctioned vessels would not enter the country, all ships, and their owners are checked.