"We now have 170,000 tourists from Ukraine every year. I'd like it to be more — up to 400,000". This is the assessment of the Georgian ambassador to Ukraine who confidently stated today Ukrainians can balance the possible loss of Russian tourists to Georgia. Well, he's being way too optimistic. Taking into account, 400,000 tourists is nothing compared to 1,500,000 Russian tourists. Also, the paying capacity of Ukrainians is questionable and the Georgian diplomat admitted this, in fact, saying they would have to lure tourists in with large discounts. However, Georgian radicals keep blaming Russia for everything, even for the fact that foreigners have bought too much real estate property in their country. However, Russians have nothing to do with this.
Our staff correspondent Stanislav Bernvald has evidence for this.
This is Kutaisi Street in the downtown of old Batumi. It's like a miniature Turkey. There are a lot of beauty salons, small shops, souvenir shops, and Turkish restaurants. There are a whole lot of them. If I didn't know that I was in Batumi, I could take this place for a street in Antalya.
"We make sauce here. There's some garlic in it, it's pretty hot, and we put some oil on top. This is a traditional Turkish sauce, right? Yes, it's called iskender".
This is the third season Gevorg has been working in the restaurant Stambul. He comes to Batumi from Gori. He says there are more opportunities. He's in the meat line. His brother makes traditional Turkish sweets.
"All of this is traditional Turkish food. Here's sutlac; it's like rice and milk pudding, very tasty. This is kraljica. It's like a cake but a little bit different".
Gevorg says that there are more and more Turkish cafes every year in Batumi. A large Turkish bath complex with a hammam and foam procedures is said to appear in Batumi.
- You see this small street, it's like 300 feet long. There's one, two, three, four five restaurants already. And they're not small, they're quite big. Ours is the biggest, by the way. There's another one, there's a fish restaurant. Everywhere you go, you'll see Turkish restaurants.
- It's all on Kutaisi Street?
- Yeah. But we call it Turkish Street.
In the next restaurant, we were met by the owner of the place. He came to Batumi from Turkey several years ago. He brought his large family with him. He told us about a mosque around the corner, about the peculiarities of Turkish cuisine in the conditions of Adjara. He also told us about Russian tourists and halal products.
Omar Faruk: "There are a lot of Arab and Turkish customers. So we must have halal products. There are a lot of Russian customers as well because Turkish restaurants are always clean".
The lack of competition is the main driver for making a whole region of Georgia Turkish. Strike while the iron is hot, first-come, first-served — these are the principles that urge Turkish citizens to settle down in Adjara.
"It's not hard to live here. We are new here. There are a lot of things in Turkey. There are a lot of factories, restaurants, stores. But here everything is new. Turks should see what there's in Turkey and then start their business here".
Georgia is bordered by Turkey, which historically had a strong influence on the region. Moreover, Adjara periodically became part of the Ottoman Empire, which some segments of Adjarian society readily recall. This is first and foremost about the local Muslims, who, according to various sources, make up from 30% to 40% of the population. Now, for example, they are heavily lobbying for the construction of a new mosque in Batumi.
According to experts, on one hand, Turkish business in Adjara is developing tourism in the region, on the other hand, such a monopoly business can lead to unexpected and unpleasant consequences.
Tamaz Bakuridze, human rights activist: "The Georgian authorities were very careful and diplomatic with the neighbors and with Turkey in particular. We can't fight with Turkey. We can't close the border to Turkey. We can't close our doors to Turkey because it will be harmful and destructive for Georgia".
If the artificial aggravation of relations with Russia goes on, Georgia risks losing not only tourists but also Russian investments. In this case, experts say, Turkey will monopolize and strengthen its presence in one of the most attractive regions of Georgia.
Stanislav Bernvald, Mikhail Devyatkin, Vesti from Batumi, Georgia.
