First Georgia to Russia flight since 2008 war lands in Moscow

Jan 8, 2010, 14:44 GMT

Moscow - The first commercial flight connecting Georgia with Russia since the week-long war in August 2008 landed in Moscow Friday, the Itar-Tass agency reported.

The Georgian Airways Boeing-737 carrying 85 passengers landed at Moscow's Domodedovo International Airport around midday after departing the Georgian capital Tbilisi.

Russia in December gave the green light to a limited resumption of air traffic between the two countries. The Russian authorities granted permission for Georgian charter flights to Moscow and St Petersburg. Regular air connections are still banned.

Russia and Georgia do not currently maintain diplomatic relations. There have been small signs of a re-warming in recent weeks, however, as the two agreed to reopen their sole border crossing on March 1, 2010.

In an unrelated development, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili traveled to Munich, Germany, to participate in an international conference on the south Caucasus, his office said.

Georgia lost control of its two breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia during the brief but bloody conflict with Russia in August 2008.

Russia, as well as Nicaragua, Venezuela and Nauru, are the only countries who have recognized the two provinces as sovereign states.