Sukhum – Agency Caucasus – Sukhum, capital of Abkhazia, hosted a government representative from Georgia for the first time since the tension between two countries has reached its peak because Georgia has reportedly been increasing its military presence along its border with Abkhazia.
Irakli Alasania, Georgia’s Permanent Representative in the United Nations, or UN, met on Monday in Sukhum with Sergei Bagapsh, President of Abkhazia, as well as with Sergei Shamba, Foreign Minister of Abkhazia. The meeting was revolved mainly around the topic of how the two countries were recently brought to the verge of war.
Reporters were not allowed to be present while the meeting was taking place. After it was over, Shamba only told reporters that he and his guest discussed some security issues and he heard from his guest that he had been worried about the possibility of a further increase in the already high tension.
It was in July of 2006 when negotiations between Georgia and Abkhazia broke off because Georgia had put its troops in Upper Kodor, the region which should have remained freed from arms according to the Moscow Pact.
The Abkhazian administration made it clear over and over again that it would not resume its negotiations with Georgia unless the Georgian troops were withdrawn from Upper Kodor. Apart from the tension that rose over the placement of Georgian troops in Upper Kodor, a crisis was fueled when Georgia piled up its military equipment along its border with Abkhazia and furthermore it flied drones over Abkhazia. At this point, the Russian government decided to send in further peacekeeping troops to Abkhazia, a move that rang the bells for a likely war across the Caucasus.
Meanwhile, Abkhazia has shot down seven Georgian drones in the past three months. The first one was shot down on March 18, the second one on April 20, the third and fourth ones together on May 4, the fifth one on May 12 while they were flying over Ochamchira. The Georgian government, however, only admitted that the second one belonged to it. ÖZ/FT
