A cruise ship carrying Russian tourists left a port in Georgia early on Thursday to the sound of angry protesters cheering their hurried departure. The Astoria Grande docked in the Black Sea port of Batumi on Thursday morning, with passengers reportedly given a day to explore the historic city. But by evening, crowds angry about the invasion of Ukraine and some of the tourists’ comments to the press accusing Georgia of occupying the Abkhazia region gathered to protest the vessel’s presence. The demonstrators waved signs reading “Russian ship, fuck you,” “Russia is an occupier,” and “Go back to your fucking country,” according to Meduza. One Russian passenger seemed confused, telling the BBC: “We are the Soviet Union. We are one country.” The ship left an hour ahead of schedule, with Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili tweeting that he was proud of the people “protesting peacefully the latest russian provocation.”
