Georgia announces foiling of Ukrainian plot to deliver explosives to Russia

Georgian authorities announced on Monday that they had foiled a Ukrainian plan to transport explosive devices into Russia through Georgian territory. Six explosive devices were brought into the country from Odessa in southern Ukraine on Jan. 19, riding in a “Ukrainian mini-van,” Georgian security services said. These items contained 14 kg of C-4 explosive material.

Three devices were seized at a border point between Georgia and Russia, and three others were found in the capital, Tbilisi. Andrei Charashidze, a Ukrainian of Georgian origin, is accused of masterminding the operation. Seven Georgians, three Ukrainians and two Armenians may have taken part in the transport without knowing they were carrying explosives, the security services added.

Georgia, an ally of the Russians

As a result, relations between Tbilisi and Kyiv become increasingly strained. Relations had already soured when Georgian authorities in 2021 detained the Caucasian country’s former pro-Western president Mikheil Saakashvili, who also holds Ukrainian nationality.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in September 2022, the Georgian government has been accused of moving closer to Russia, whose forces nevertheless invaded the former Soviet republic in the Caucasus in 2008.

In September 2023, Georgia accused a senior Ukrainian official of preparing a coup to overthrow the government. In July, Ukraine ordered the Georgian ambassador to leave the country, a year after recalling its representative from Georgia.