Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry issues statement on citizens stuck at Russia–Georgia border

The MFA reminded that since mid‑June 2025, the Russian side has stepped up the deportation of Ukrainian citizens through the Georgia border, leading to a worsening humanitarian situation at the Georgian checkpoint Dariali on the border with Russia.

According to the Ministry, thanks to measures taken by the MFA together with relevant Ukrainian agencies, between late June and now, they have managed to arrange departures for 44 Ukrainian citizens from the buffer zone at the Russia–Georgia border.

At the same time, Russia has continued sending more deportees, which may indicate a deliberate Russian operation. Currently, 96 Ukrainian citizens remain in the buffer zone at the Dariali checkpoint.

The MFA also recalled that earlier, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha publicly urged the Russian side to send deported Ukrainian citizens directly to the Ukrainian border.

"Our state is ready to take our people directly, not via Georgia or Moldova. As of now, we note that the Russian Federation is ignoring this call, which also demonstrates Moscow’s deliberate intent to create a humanitarian crisis at the Russia–Georgia border," the Ministry said.

They added that the majority of Ukrainian citizens being deported to the Georgian border by Russia are individuals previously brought to criminal responsibility. Among them are those who served sentences in Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories and were forcibly relocated to Russia, as well as Ukrainian citizens residing in Russia who were convicted of crimes committed there.

The MFA noted that the Dariali checkpoint has been used in previous years to return deported Ukrainians. The issue escalated in July due to Russia’s intensified deportations through this checkpoint in June, along with Moldova's temporary suspension of transit for people in this category.

Ukrainian citizens ended up in the Georgia–Russia buffer zone in extremely difficult conditions, because the Georgian side expressed readiness to organize transport to Tbilisi airport only after Moldova confirmed readiness to accept them as a transit country.

"To address the humanitarian aspects of Ukrainians staying in the Georgian border buffer zone, Ukraine’s embassy in Georgia is actively working with Georgian authorities, involving the International Committee of the Red Cross, UNHCR, and the International Organization for Migration in Georgia," the MFA said.

The Ministry reported that on August 5, Ukraine’s embassy in Georgia received appeals from five Ukrainian citizens deported from Russia and temporarily detained at the Dariali checkpoint, concerning their initiation of an indefinite hunger strike demanding permission to cross Georgia's border.

Other citizens at the checkpoint have also joined the strike.

"The MFA, with the involvement of Ukraine’s embassies in Georgia and Moldova, as well as cooperation with relevant ministries and agencies of these countries and Ukraine, is working to resolve this humanitarian crisis as quickly as possible," the Ministry emphasized.

Officials also stated that upon learning of the hunger strike, consular staff from Ukraine’s embassy in Georgia immediately travelled to the border to meet Ukrainian citizens at the Dariali checkpoint and appealed to Georgian authorities for urgent and unhindered access.

The consuls remain in constant contact with Ukrainian citizens at Dariali, including those on hunger strike.

"In these hours, the Ukrainian side is actively working with Georgian and Moldovan colleagues at all levels to find the fastest solution for transiting Ukrainian citizens via Moldova and to arrange for the next groups of people to be returned from the Dariali checkpoint in the near future," the Ministry added.

Ukrainians stranded at the Russia–Georgia border

In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree requiring Ukrainians "illegally staying in Russia" to either leave the country or legalize their status by September 10.

As a result of these actions by Russian authorities, dozens of people have become stranded in the transit zone between the Russian and Georgian borders. Many of them, after being released from Russian prisons, lack proper identification documents.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has called on Russia to stop deporting Ukrainians to the Georgian border and instead return them directly to the Ukrainian border.

Meanwhile, Georgian law enforcement has suggested that Ukraine independently retrieve its formerly convicted citizens from the border checkpoints.

It was recently reported that Georgian authorities plan to expand the living space at the Dariali checkpoint, where deported Ukrainians, denied entry into Georgia, are currently being held.

Yesterday, it was reported that five Ukrainians detained in the basement of the Georgian border checkpoint Dariali on the border with Russia have launched an indefinite hunger strike.