Problems related to the supply of wheat and flour in Georgia are neither observed nor expected, Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili said on Wednesday, adding it was foreseeable the export tax would be removed and the country would be able to buy wheat “on better terms and cheaper.”
In an interview with Palitra News, Davitashvili also said Georgia had “various alternatives” to importing wheat from Russia, naming Eastern European countries and Kazakhstan, and adding the focus is to “buy it cheaper.”
"No problem expected in supply of wheat flour today in Georgia. Moreover, Georgia has alternative, including Eastern European countries, more distant partners in the Southern Hemisphere or very close to our neighboring Kazakhstan, but the point is to buy wheat flour at cheaper price and keep the bread more affordable “, - said the Minister.
To the reporter’s question - if there are talks about the abolition of the export tax on Russian wheat, - the Minister said: Yes.
Levan Davitashvili also touched upon the sanctions imposed on Russia, saying that the international community did not sanction oil products, energy carriers and agriculture products, the decision on to ban oil products was made by several countries, including the United States.
“Sanctions are not imposed on oil products, energy carriers or agriculture products, this is the decision of the international community. Individually, several countries, including the United States, decided yesterday not to accept Russian oil and energy carriers, but the US dependence is quite small and it has quite a lot of alternatives.
Today, many EU countries receive energy from Russia. When the matter concerns to the sanctions we are talking about the scope of our capabilities, while the international community talks from their capabilities. Every decision must be made responsibly, and European countries also will act within their responsibility.
Maybe, we want to make more effective decisions, but not all countries, including Georgia, are allowed to do everything due to its reality," Levan Davitashvili said.
At the same time, the Vice Prime Minister reiterated that there is no precondition for the deficit in Georgia, the country has reserves and will be replenished continuously.
In 2021, Georgia purchased 367,000 tons of wheat worth $ 93.5 million. Of this, wheat worth of $ 87.4 million (338,000 tons) was imported from Russian , while $ 4.6 million of wheat - from the U.S. (24.4 thousand tons).
