Putin declines calls to sanction Georgia

Moscow: Russia's President Vladimir Putin recently stated that he would not support the State Duma's idea of imposing sanctions on Georgia, regardless of rising tensions between the two countries.

"As for imposing sanctions against Georgia, I wouldn't do it out of respect for the Georgian people. For the sake of these people and for the sake of restoring full-fledged relations between Russia and Georgia, I wouldn't do anything that would complicate the relations," Putin was quoted by Russian media as saying.

Earlier in the day, the Russian State Duma of the Federal Assembly, or the lower house of parliament, adopted at a plenary session a statement in which it recommended the Russian government consider applying "special economic restrictive measures" on Georgia and to submit relevant proposals to Putin.

Russian lawmakers condemned in the statement the "incessant anti-Russian provocations" in Georgia and noted that the attacks by the country's radical forces have further deteriorated Russia-Georgia relations.

Tensions between Russia and Georgia escalated sharply since last month after thousands of Georgian people gathered in front of the parliament building in downtown Tbilisi in protest against a Russian lawmaker's visit.

As a result, at least 240 people were injured in the riots and over 300 participants in the rally were detained.

In response to Putin's remarks, Russia's State Duma said that it would not withdraw its statement on Georgia and that the Russian government is "obliged to prepare measures," should the provocations continue.

Relations between the two countries have been rocky for years owing to Russia's support for the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The two countries fought a short war in 2008.