Jump to content

Abkhazia

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Wester (talk | contribs) at 22:01, 16 March 2014 (http://oxbridgepartners.com/hratch/index.php/in-the-news/activities/250-the-armenian-community-in-abkhazia-today). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Republic of Abkhazia
  • ----Аҧсны Аҳәынҭқарра (Аҧсны) (Abkhaz)
    Aphsny Axwynthqarra (Aphsny)
  • ----აფხაზეთი (Georgian)
    Apkhazeti
  • ----Республика Абхазия (Абхазия) (Russian)
    Respublika Abkhaziya (Abkhaziya)
Anthem: Аиааира (Abkhaz)
Aiaaira
Victory
Map centred on the Caucasus indicating Abkhazia (orange) and Georgia proper with South Ossetia (grey).
Map centred on the Caucasus indicating Abkhazia (orange)
and Georgia proper with South Ossetia (grey).
Capital
and largest city
Sukhumi
Official languages
Spoken languages
Demonym(s)
  • Abkhaz
  • Abkhazian
GovernmentUnitary semi-presidential republic
• President
Alexander Ankvab
Leonid Lakerbaia
LegislaturePeople's Assembly
Partially recognised independence from Georgia[1][2][3]
• Georgian annulment of all Soviet-era laws and treaties
20 June 1990
• Declaration of sovereigntyb
25 August 1990
• Georgian declaration of independence
9 April 1991
26 December 1991
• Declaration of Independence
23 July 1992
26 November 1994
3 October 1999
• Act of state independencec
12 October 1999

26 August 2008
Area
• Total
8,660[4] km2 (3,340 sq mi)
Population
• 2012 estimate
242,862[5]
• 2011 census
240,705 [6]
• Density
28/km2 (72.5/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)estimate
• Total
$500 million[7]
Currency
(RUB)
Time zoneUTC+3 (MSK)
Drives onRight
Calling code+7 840 / 940[8]
  1. The Russian language is recognised as a language of state and other institutions (Article 6 of the Constitution) and is widely used.
  2. Annulled by Georgia immediately thereafter.
  3. To establish, retroactively, de jure independence since the 1992–1993 war.
  4. By Russia. Since then, a further 5 UN member states have also recognised Abkhazia's independence.
  5. De facto currency. Several Abkhazian apsar commemorative coins have been issued. The apsar is on a fixed exchange rate, pegged to the Russian ruble (1 ruble = 0.10 apsar).

Abkhazia (Template:Lang-ab Apsny [apʰsˈnɨ]; Georgian: აფხაზეთი Apkhazeti; Template:Lang-ru Abkhaziya) is a disputed territory on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.

Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny.[9][10][11][12][13] This status is recognised by Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru, and Tuvalu,[14] and also by the partially recognised state of South Ossetia, and the unrecognised Transnistria[15] and Nagorno-Karabakh.[16]

The Georgian government and the majority of the world's governments consider Abkhazia a part of Georgia's territory, though Georgia is not in control of it. Under Georgia's official designation it is an autonomous republic, called the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia, whose government sits in exile in Tbilisi.

The status of Abkhazia is a central issue of the Georgian–Abkhazian conflict. The wider region formed part of the Soviet Union until 1991. As the Soviet Union began to disintegrate towards the end of the 1980s, ethnic tensions grew between the Abkhaz and Georgians over Georgia's moves towards independence. This led to the 1992–1993 War in Abkhazia that resulted in a Georgian military defeat, de facto independence of Abkhazia and the mass exodus and ethnic cleansing of the Georgian population from Abkhazia. In spite of the 1994 ceasefire agreement and years of negotiations, the status dispute has not been resolved, and despite the long-term presence of a United Nations monitoring force and a Russian-dominated Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) peacekeeping operation, the conflict has flared up on several occasions. In August 2008, the sides again fought during the South Ossetia War, which was followed by the formal recognition of Abkhazia by Russia, the annulment of the 1994 ceasefire agreement and the termination of the UN and CIS missions.[citation needed] On 28 August 2008, the Parliament of Georgia passed a resolution declaring Abkhazia a Russian-occupied territory.[17][18] A major part of international community considers Abkhazia to be occupied by Russian military. Russia does not allow the EUMM monitors to enter Abkhazia.[19]

Naming

The Abkhazians call their state Аҧсны (Apsny), which means “a Country of Soul”.[20] The Russian Абхазия (Abkhazia) is adapted from the Georgian აფხაზეთი (Apkhazeti). In Mingrelian, Abkhazia is known as აბჟუა (Abzhua)[21] or სააფხაზო (saapkhazo).[22]

History

Main article: History of Abkhazia

Early history

Kingdom of Abkhazia at its greatest extent and Caucasus in 1000.

Between the 9th and 6th centuries BC, the territory of modern of the region of Abkhazia (north west Georgia) was part of the ancient Georgian[23][24][25] kingdom of Colchis ("Kolkha").[26]

Between 1000 and 550 BC, Greeks established trade colonies along the coast of the Black Sea, in particular at Pitsunda and Dioscurias, which was to become the capital of modern day autonomius republic of Abkhazia. They encountered local warlike tribes who they called Heniochi.[citation needed] Classical authors described various peoples living in the region and the great multitude of languages they spoke.[citation needed] Arrian, Pliny and Strabo have given accounts of the Abasgoi[27] (generally considered ancestors of the modern Abkhazians) and Moschoi[28] (generally considered as ancestors of Georgian Meskhetians) peoples somewhere in modern autonomius republic of Abkhazia on the eastern shore of the Black Sea.[29]

The Roman Empire conquered Egrisi (part of the modern day autonomous republic of Abkhazia) in the 1st century AD and ruled it until the 4th century, following which it regained a measure of independence, but remained within the Byzantine Empire's sphere of influence. Although the exact time when the population of the region of Abkhazia was converted to Christianity has not been determined, it is known that the Metropolitan of Pitius participated in the First Ecumenical Council in 325 in Nicaea.[citation needed]

Kingdom of Abkhazia was united through dynastic succession with the newly formed Kingdom of Georgia in 1008 when Bagrat II of Abkhazia became Bagrat III of Georgia.

Abkhazia, in classic sources,[citation needed] formerly part of Colchis and later of Egrisi (Lazica) until the late 690s, was a princedom under Byzantine authority. Anacopia was the princedom's capital. The country was mostly Christian with the archbishop's seat in Pityus.[26] An Arab incursion and expedition to Abkhazia was repelled by Leon I jointly with his Kartlian allies in 736.

After acquiring Egrisi via a dynastic union in the 780s[30] Abkhazia became the dominant power in the region and the Kingdom of Abkhazia, also known as the Kingdom of the Abkhaz, was established. During this period the Georgian language replaced Greek as the language of literacy and culture.[31] The western Georgian kingdom flourished between 850 and 950 when it annexed significant parts of Eastern Georgia including Tbilisi. A period of unrest ensued, which ended as Abkhazia and eastern Georgian states were unified under a single Georgian monarchy, ruled by King Bagrat III (who was buried in the Monastery of Bedia in the Tkvarcheli district of Abkhazia) at the end of the 10th century and the beginning of the 11th century.

In the 16th century, after the break-up of the Georgian Kingdom into small kingdoms and principalities, Principality of Abkhazia emerged (a vassal of the kingdom of Imereti), which was [4] ruled by the Shervashidze dynasty (also known as Sharvashidze, or Chachba/Chachibaia).[citation needed] Since the 1570s, when the Ottoman navy occupied the fort of Tskhumi, The vassal principality of Abkhazia came under the influence of the Ottoman Empire and Islam. Under Ottoman rule, the majority of Abkhazians were converted to Islam. The principality retained a degree of autonomy under Ottoman and then Russian rule, but it was eventually absorbed into the Russian Empire in 1864.[4][26]

Abkhazia within the Russian Empire

Abkhazia in 1899. Abkhazia was administered as Sukhum District of Kutaisi Governorate when it was part of Russian Empire.

In the beginning of the 19th century, while the Russians and Ottomans were vying for control of the region, the rulers of Abkhazia shifted back and forth across the religious divide.[citation needed] The first attempt to enter into relations with Russia was made by Keilash Bey in 1803, shortly after the incorporation of eastern Georgia into the expanding Tsarist empire (1801). However, the pro-Ottoman orientation prevailed for a short time after his assassination by his son Aslan-Bey on 2 May 1808.[citation needed] On 2 July 1810, the Russian Marines stormed Sukhum-Kale and had Aslan-Bey replaced with his rival brother, Sefer-Bey (1810–1821), who had converted to Christianity and assumed the name of George. Abkhazia joined the Russian Empire as an autonomous principality, in 1810.[4] However, George’s rule, as well as that of his successors, was limited to the neighbourhood of Sukhum-Kale and the Bzyb area.[citation needed] The next Russo-Turkish war strongly enhanced the Russian positions, leading to a further split in the Abkhaz elite, mainly along religious divisions. During the Crimean War (1853–1856), Russian forces had to evacuate Abkhazia and Prince Michael (1822–1864) seemingly switched to the Ottomans.[citation needed]

Later on, the Russian presence strengthened and the highlanders of Western Caucasia were finally subjugated by Russia in 1864.[citation needed] The autonomy of Abkhazia, which had functioned as a pro-Russian "buffer zone" in this troublesome region, was no longer needed by the Tsarist government and the rule of the Shervashidze came to an end; in November 1864, Prince Michael was forced to renounce his rights and resettle in Voronezh.[citation needed] Later that same year, Abkhazia was incorporated into the Russian Empire as a special military province[4] of Sukhum-Kale which was transformed, in 1883, into an okrug as part of the Kutais Guberniya. Large numbers of Muslim Abkhazians, said to have constituted as much as 40% of the Abkhazian population, emigrated to the Ottoman Empire between 1864 and 1878 with other Muslim population of Caucasus, a process known as Muhajirism.

Large areas of the region were left uninhabited and many Armenians, Georgians, Russians and others subsequently migrated to Abkhazia, resettling much of the vacated territory.[32] Some Georgian historians assert that Georgian tribes (Svans and Mingrelians) had populated Abkhazia since the time of the Colchis kingdom.[33]

By official decision of the Russian authorities the residents of Abkhazia and Samurzakano had to study and pray in Russian. After the mass deportation of 1878, Abkhazians who were left in minority and were officially branded as "guilty people", had no leaders in order to carry out serious opposition against Russification politics of the empire.[34] On March 17th 1898 when sinodal department of Georgia-Imereti of Russian Orthodox Church by order 2771 again prohibited teaching and conduction of religious services in church schools and churches of the Sukhumi district in Georgian language, it was followed by mass protests of Georgian population of Abkhazia and Samurzakano that reached the Russian emperor. On September 3rd 1898 the Holy Synod issued order 4880 which determined: Those parishes where congregation were Mingrelians i.e. Georgians, both church services and church education should have been conducted in Georgian language, while in Abkhazian parishes in old Slavic language. This order was carried out only in three parishes out of 42 in the Sukhumi district.[34] Tedo Sakhokia demanded from Russian authorities to introduce Abkhazian and Georgian languages in church services and education. In response, authorities instituted a criminal case against Tedo Sakhokia and leaders of the "Georgian party" that was active in Abkhazia, headed by Sakhokia.[34]

Abkhazia within the Soviet Union

Map of the Soviet Caucasus (1957–91) showing the Abkhaz ASSR (Russian: Abkhazskaya ASSR) within the Georgian SSR.

The Russian Revolution of 1917 led to the creation of an independent Georgia which included Abkhazia, in 1918.[4] German support enabled the Georgians to repel the Bolshevik threat from Abkhazia in 1918. The 1921 constitution granted Abkhazia autonomy.

In 1921, the Bolshevik Red Army invaded Georgia and ended its short-lived independence. Abkhazia was made a Socialist Soviet Republic (SSR Abkhazia) with the ambiguous status of a treaty republic associated with the Georgian SSR.[4][35][36] In 1931, Joseph Stalin made it an autonomous republic (Abkhaz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic or in short Abkhaz ASSR) within the Georgian SSR.[26] Despite its nominal autonomy, it was subjected to strong direct rule from central Soviet authorities. Under the rule of Stalin and Beria Abkhaz schools were closed, requiring Abkhaz children to study in the Georgian language.[37][38][39] The publishing of materials in Abkhazians dwindled and was eventually stopped altogether; Abkhazian schools were closed on 1945/46.[40]

The policy of repression was eased after Stalin's death[26] and Beria's execution, and the Abkhaz were given a greater role in the governance of the republic.[26] As in most of the smaller autonomous republics, the Soviet government encouraged the development of culture and particularly of literature.

Abkhazia in post-Soviet Georgia

Main article: Georgian–Abkhaz conflict

As the Soviet Union began to disintegrate at the end of the 1980s, ethnic tensions grew between the Abkhaz and Georgians over Georgia's moves towards independence. Many Abkhaz opposed this, fearing that an independent Georgia would lead to the elimination of their autonomy, and argued instead for the establishment of Abkhazia as a separate Soviet republic in its own right. The dispute turned violent on 16 July 1989 in Sukhumi. Sixteen Georgians are said to have been killed and another 137 injured when they tried to enroll in a Georgian University instead of an Abkhaz one. After several days of violence, Soviet troops restored order in the city and blamed rival nationalist paramilitaries for provoking confrontations. In June 1988, the so-called Abkhaz Letter was sent to Gorbachev.

In March 1990, Georgia declared sovereignty, unilaterally nullifying treaties concluded by the Soviet government since 1921 and thereby moving closer to independence. The Republic of Georgia boycotted the 17 March 1991 all-Union referendum on the renewal of the Soviet Union called by Mikhail Gorbachev; however, 52.3% of Abkhazia's population (almost all of the ethnic non-Georgian population) took part in the referendum and voted by an overwhelming majority (98.6%) to preserve the Union.[41][42] Most ethnic non-Georgians in Abkhazia later boycotted a 31 March referendum on Georgia’s independence, which was supported by a huge majority of Georgia's population. Within weeks, Georgia declared independence on 9 April 1991, under former Soviet dissident Zviad Gamsakhurdia. Under Gamsakhurdia, the situation was relatively calm in Abkhazia and a power-sharing agreement was soon reached between the Abkhaz and Georgian factions, granting to the Abkhaz a certain over-representation in the local legislature.[43]

Gamsakhurdia's rule was soon challenged by armed opposition groups, under the command of Tengiz Kitovani, that forced him to flee the country in a military coup in January 1992. Former Soviet foreign minister and architect of the disintegration of the USSR Eduard Shevardnadze became the country's head of state, inheriting a government dominated by hard-line Georgian nationalists. He was not an ethnic nationalist but did little to avoid being seen as supporting his administration's dominant figures and the leaders of the coup that swept him to power.[citation needed]

On 21 February 1992, Georgia's ruling Military Council announced that it was abolishing the Soviet-era constitution and restoring the 1921 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Georgia. Many Abkhaz interpreted this as an abolition of their autonomous status, although the 1921 constitution contained a provision for the region's autonomy.[44] On 23 July 1992, the Abkhaz faction in the republic's Supreme Council declared effective independence from Georgia, although the session was boycotted by ethnic Georgian deputies and the gesture went unrecognised by any other country. The Abkhaz leadership launched a campaign of ousting Georgian officials from their offices, a process which was accompanied by violence. In the meantime, the Abkhaz leader Vladislav Ardzinba intensified his ties with hardline Russian politicians and military elite and declared he was ready for a war with Georgia.[45]

Abkhazian War

Main article: War in Abkhazia (1992–93)

In August 1992, the Georgian government accused Gamsakhurdia's supporters of kidnapping Georgia's Interior Minister and holding him captive in Abkhazia. The Georgian government dispatched 3,000 soldiers to the region, ostensibly to restore order. The Abkhaz were relatively unarmed at this time and the Georgian troops were able to march into Sukhumi with relatively little resistance[46] and subsequently engaged in ethnically based pillage, looting, assault, and murder.[47] The Abkhaz units were forced to retreat to Gudauta and Tkvarcheli.

The Abkhaz military defeat was met with a hostile response by the self-styled Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus, an umbrella group uniting a number of movements in the North Caucasus, including elements of Circassians, Abazins, Chechens, Cossacks, Ossetians and hundreds of volunteer paramilitaries and mercenaries from Russia, including the then little-known Shamil Basayev, later a leader of the anti-Moscow Chechen secessionists. They sided with the Abkhaz separatists to fight against the Georgian government. In the case of Basayev, it has been suggested that when he and the members of his battalion came to Abkhazia, they received training by the Russian Army (though others dispute this), presenting another possible motive.[48] In September, the Abkhaz and Russian paramilitaries mounted a major offensive against Gagra after breaking a cease-fire, which drove the Georgian forces out of large swathes of the republic. Shevardnadze's government accused Russia of giving covert military support to the rebels with the aim of "detaching from Georgia its native territory and the Georgia-Russian frontier land". 1992 ended with the rebels in control of much of Abkhazia northwest of Sukhumi.

The conflict was in stalemate until July 1993, when Abkhaz separatist militias launched an abortive attack on Georgian-held Sukhumi. They surrounded and heavily shelled the capital, where Shevardnadze was trapped. The warring sides agreed to a Russian-brokered truce in Sochi at the end of July. But the ceasefire broke down again on 16 September 1993. Abkhaz forces, with armed support from outside Abkhazia, launched attacks on Sukhumi and Ochamchira. Notwithstanding UN Security Council's call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and its condemnation of the violation of the ceasefire by the Abkhaz side, fighting continued.[49] After ten days of heavy fighting, Sukhumi was taken by Abkhazian forces on 27 September 1993. Shevardnadze narrowly escaped death, after vowing to stay in the city no matter what. He was forced to flee when separatist snipers fired on the hotel where he was staying. Abkhaz, North Caucasian militants, and their allies committed numerous atrocities[50] against the city's remaining ethnic Georgians, in what has been dubbed the Sukhumi Massacre. The mass killings and destruction continued for two weeks, leaving thousands dead and missing.

The Abkhaz forces quickly overran the rest of Abkhazia as the Georgian government faced a second threat: an uprising by the supporters of the deposed Zviad Gamsakhurdia in the region of Mingrelia (Samegrelo). Only a small region of eastern Abkhazia, the upper Kodori gorge, remained under Georgian control (until 2008).

During the war, gross human rights violations were reported on both sides (see Human Rights Watch report).[50] Georgian troops have been accused of having committed looting[46] and murders "for the purpose of terrorising, robbing and driving the Abkhaz population out of their homes"[50] in the first phase of the war (according to Human Rights Watch), while Georgia blames the Abkhaz forces and their allies for the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia, which has also been recognised by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Summits in Budapest (1994),[51] Lisbon (1996)[52] and Istanbul (1999).[53]

In the chaotic aftermath of defeat almost all ethnic Georgians fled the region, escaping an ethnic cleansing initiated by the victors. Many thousands died; it is estimated that on each side there were about 4,000 casualties, both military and civilian.[50]

Ethnic cleansing of Georgians

Main article: Ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia

Prior to the 1992 War, Georgians made up nearly half of Abkhazia's population, while less than one-fifth of the population was Abkhaz.[54] As the war progressed, the Abkhaz separatist have carried out the policy of violent displacement of ethnic Georgians from their homes which has left 250,000 people being forcefully evicted from their homes.[55]

Confronted with hundreds of thousands of ethnic Georgians who were unwilling to leave their homes, the Abkhaz side implemented the process of ethnic cleansing in order to expel and eliminate the Georgian ethnic population in Abkhazia.[56] The exact number of those killed during the ethnic cleansing is disputed, however, it ranges from 8,000 to 10,000 people, not including the civilians who were killed in 1998 during the separatist onslaught on Gali region.[57] Roughly up to 250,000 ethnic Georgians were expelled from their homes. Slightly over 200,000 Georgians remain displaced in Georgia proper.[58]

The campaign ethnic cleansing also included Russians, Armenians, Greeks, moderate Abkhaz and other minor ethnic groups living in Abkhazia. More than 20,000 houses owned by ethnic Georgians were destroyed. Hundreds of Schools, kindergartens, churches, hospitals, historical monuments were pillaged and destroyed.[59] Following a process of ethnic cleansing and mass expulsion, population of Abkhazia has been reduced to 216,000, from 525,000 in 1989.[60]

Of about 250,000 Georgian refugees, some 60,000 Georgian refugees subsequently returned to Abkhazia's Gali district between 1994 and 1998, but tens of thousands were displaced again when fighting resumed in the Gali district in 1998. Nevertheless, between 40,000 and 60,000 refugees have returned to the Gali district since 1998, including persons commuting daily across the ceasefire line and those migrating seasonally in accordance with agricultural cycles.[61] The human rights situation remained precarious for a while in the Georgian-populated areas of the Gali district. The United Nations and other international organisations have been fruitlessly urging the Abkhaz de facto authorities "to refrain from adopting measures incompatible with the right to return and with international human rights standards, such as discriminatory legislation... [and] to cooperate in the establishment of a permanent international human rights office in Gali and to admit United Nations civilian police without further delay."[62] Key officials of the Gali district are virtually all ethnic Abkhaz, though their support staff are ethnic Georgian.[63]

Post-war Abkhazia

Main article: Georgian–Abkhaz conflict

Presidential elections were held in Abkhazia on 3 October 2004. Russia evidently supported Raul Khadjimba, the prime minister backed by the ailing outgoing separatist President Vladislav Ardzinba. Posters of Russia's President Vladimir Putin together with Khadjimba, who, like Putin, had worked as a KGB official, were everywhere in Sukhumi.[citation needed] Deputies of Russia's parliament and Russian singers, led by Joseph Kobzon, a deputy and a popular singer, came to Abkhazia campaigning for Khadjimba.

However Raul Khadjimba lost the elections to Sergei Bagapsh. The tense situation in the republic led to the cancellation of the election results by the Supreme Court. After that, a deal was struck between former rivals to run jointly, with Bagapsh as a presidential candidate and Khadjimba as a vice presidential candidate. They received more than 90% of the votes in the new election.[citation needed]

In July 2006, Georgian forces launched a successful police operation against the rebelled administrator of the Georgian populated Kodori Gorge, Emzar Kvitsiani. Kvitsiani had been appointed by the previous president of Georgia Edvard Shevardnadze and refused to recognise the authority of president Mikheil Saakashvili, who succeeded Shevardnadze after the Rose Revolution. Although Kvitsiani escaped capture by Georgian police, the Kodori Gorge was brought back under the control of the central government in Tbilisi.

Sporadic acts of violence continued throughout the postwar years. Despite the peacekeeping status of the Russian peacekeepers in Abkhazia, Georgian officials routinely claimed that Russian peacekeepers were inciting violence by supplying Abkhaz rebels with arms and financial support. Russian support of Abkhazia became pronounced when the Russian ruble became the de facto currency and Russia began issuing passports to the population of Abkhazia.[64] Georgia has also accused Russia of violating its airspace by sending helicopters to attack Georgian-controlled towns in the Kodori Gorge. In April 2008, a Russian MiG – prohibited from Georgian airspace, including Abkhazia – shot down a Georgian UAV.[65][66]

On 9 August 2008, Abkhazian forces fired on Georgian forces in Kodori Gorge. This coincided with the 2008 South Ossetia war where Russia decided to support the Ossetian separatists who had been attacked by Georgia.[67][68] The conflict escalated into a full-scale war between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Georgia. On 10 August 2008 an estimated 9,000 Russian soldiers entered Abkhazia ostensibly to reinforce the Russian peacekeepers in the republic. About 1,000 Abkhazian soldiers moved to expel the residual Georgian forces within Abkhazia in the Upper Kodori Gorge.[69] By 12 August the Georgian forces and civilians had evacuated the last part of Abkhazia under Georgian government control. Russia recognised the independence of Abkhazia on 26 August 2008.[70][71] Moreover, on 17 November 2008, the Abkhaz parliament ratified a bill that authorised the construction of a Russian military base in Abkhazia in 2009.[citation needed]

Since independence was recognised by Russia a series of controversial agreements were made between the Abkhazian government and the Russian Federation that leased or sold a number of key state assets and relinquished control over the borders. In May 2009 several opposition parties and war veteran groups protested against these deals complaining that they undermined state sovereignty and risked exchanging one colonial power (Georgia) for another (Russia).[72] The Vice President, Raul Khadjimba, resigned on 28 May saying he agreed with the criticism the opposition had made.[73] Subsequently, a conference of opposition parties nominated Raul Khadjimba as their candidate in the December 2009 Abkhazian presidential election won by Sergei Bagapsh.

International status

Main articles: International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and Controversy over Abkhazian and South Ossetian independence
See also: Foreign relations of Abkhazia
Map of Georgia highlighting Abkhazia (green) and South Ossetia (purple).

The Russian Federation and Nicaragua officially recognised Abkhazia after the 2008 South Ossetia War. Venezuela recognised Abkhazia in September 2009.[74][75] In December 2009, Nauru recognised Abkhazia, reportedly in return for $50 million in humanitarian aid from Russia.[76] The unrecognised republic of Transnistria and the partially recognised republic of South Ossetia have recognised Abkhazia since 2006. Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria all belong to the Community for Democracy and Human Rights, a group that attempts to further the cause of unrecognised states that came from the former Soviet Union. Abkhazia is also a member of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO). A majority of sovereign states recognise Abkhazia as an integral part of Georgia and support its territorial integrity according to the principles of international law, although Belarus has expressed sympathy toward the recognition of Abkhazia.[77][78] The United Nations has been urging both sides to settle the dispute through diplomatic dialogue and ratifying the final status of Abkhazia in the Georgian constitution.[50][79] However, the Abkhaz de facto government considers Abkhazia a sovereign country even if it is recognised by few other countries. In early 2000, then-UN Special Representative of the Secretary General Dieter Boden and the Group of Friends of Georgia, consisting of the representatives of Russia, the United States, Britain, France, and Germany, drafted and informally presented a document to the parties outlining a possible distribution of competencies between the Abkhaz and Georgian authorities, based on a core respect for Georgian territorial integrity. The Abkhaz side, however, has never accepted the paper as a basis for negotiations.[80] Eventually, Russia also withdrew its approval of the document.[81] In 2005 and 2008, the Georgian government offered Abkhazia a high degree of autonomy and possible federal structure within the borders and jurisdiction of Georgia.

On 18 October 2006, the People's Assembly of Abkhazia passed a resolution, calling upon Russia, international organisations and the rest of the international community to recognise Abkhaz independence on the basis that Abkhazia possesses all the properties of an independent state.[82] The United Nations has reaffirmed "the commitment of all Member States to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders" and outlined the basic principles of conflict resolution which call for immediate return of all displaced persons and for non-resumption of hostilities.[83]

Georgia accuses the Abkhaz secessionists of having conducted a deliberate campaign of ethnic cleansing of up to 250,000 Georgians, a claim supported by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE; Budapest, Lisbon and Istanbul declaration).[84] The UN Security Council has avoided use of the term "ethnic cleansing" but has affirmed "the unacceptability of the demographic changes resulting from the conflict".[85] On 15 May 2008, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a non-binding resolution recognising the right of all refugees (including victims of reported “ethnic cleansing”) to return to Abkhazia and their property rights. It "regretted" the attempts to alter pre-war demographic composition and called for the "rapid development of a timetable to ensure the prompt voluntary return of all refugees and internally displaced persons to their homes."[86]

On 28 March 2008, the President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili unveiled his government's new proposals to Abkhazia: the broadest possible autonomy within the framework of a Georgian state, a joint free economic zone, representation in the central authorities including the post of vice-president with the right to veto Abkhaz-related decisions.[87] The Abkhaz leader Sergei Bagapsh rejected these new initiatives as "propaganda", leading to Georgia's complaints that this scepticism was "triggered by Russia, rather than by real mood of the Abkhaz people."[88]

Embassy of Russia in Sukhumi

On 3 July 2008, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly passed a resolution at its annual session in Astana, expressing concern over Russia’s recent moves in breakaway Abkhazia. The resolution calls on the Russian authorities to refrain from maintaining ties with the breakaway regions “in any manner that would constitute a challenge to the sovereignty of Georgia” and also urges Russia “to abide by OSCE standards and generally accepted international norms with respect to the threat or use of force to resolve conflicts in relations with other participating States.”[89]

On 9 July 2012, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly passed a resolution at its annual session in Monaco, underlining Georgia’s territorial integrity and referring to breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia as “occupied territories”. The resolution “urges the Government and the Parliament of the Russian Federation, as well as the de facto authorities of Abkhazia, Georgia and South Ossetia, Georgia, to allow the European Union Monitoring Mission unimpeded access to the occupied territories.” It also says that the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is “concerned about the humanitarian situation of the displaced persons both in Georgia and in the occupied territories of Abkhazia, Georgia and South Ossetia, Georgia, as well as the denial of the right of return to their places of living.” The Assembly is the parliamentary dimension of the OSCE with 320 lawmakers from the organisation’s 57 participating states, including Russia.[90]

Law on Occupied Territories of Georgia

Main article: Occupied territories of Georgia

In late October 2008 President Saakashvili signed into law legislation on the occupied territories passed by the Georgian Parliament. The law covers the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (territories of former South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast).[91][92][93] The law spells out restrictions on free movement and economic activity in the territories. In particular, according to the law, foreign citizens should enter the two breakaway regions only through Georgia proper. Entry into Abkhazia should be carried out from the Zugdidi District and into South Ossetia from the Gori District. The major road leading to South Ossetia from the rest of Georgia passes through the Gori District.

The legislation, however, also lists "special" cases in which entry into the breakaway regions will not be regarded as illegal. It stipulates that a special permit on entry into the breakaway regions can be issued if the trip there "serves Georgia’s state interests; peaceful resolution of the conflict; de-occupation or humanitarian purposes." The law also bans any type of economic activity – entrepreneurial or non- entrepreneurial, if such activities require permits, licenses or registration in accordance with Georgian legislation. It also bans air, sea and railway communications and international transit via the regions, mineral exploration and money transfers. The provision covering economic activities is retroactive, going back to 1990.

The law says that the Russian Federation – the state which has carried out military occupation – is fully responsible for the violation of human rights in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The Russian Federation, according to the document, is also responsible for compensation of material and moral damage inflicted on Georgian citizens, stateless persons and foreign citizens, who are in Georgia and enter the occupied territories with appropriate permits. The law also says that de facto state agencies and officials operating in the occupied territories are regarded by Georgia as illegal. The law will remain in force until "the full restoration of Georgian jurisdiction" over the breakaway regions is realised.

Status-neutral passports

See also: Abkhazian passport

Currently Georgia considers all residents of Abkhazia its citizens, while they see themselves as Abkhaz citizens.[58]

In the summer of 2011 the Parliament of Georgia adopted a package of legislative amendments providing for the issuance of neutral identification and travel documents to residents of Abkhazia and the former South Ossetian autonomous province of Georgia. The document allows travelling abroad, as well as enjoying social benefits existing in Georgia. The new neutral identification and travel documents were called "neutral passports".[94]

According to Georgian officials, the “neutral passports” lacked any symbols of Georgia and only bore a registration number and an individual number. Moscow argued it was Georgia’s "cunning ploy" because the passports contained Georgia’s code and the Georgian Interior Ministry as the issuing body.

Abkhazia’s Foreign Ministry expressed concerns about some countries recognizing the “neutral passports.” The ministry also said an increasing number of Abkhazian residents with Russian passports were being denied Schengen visas.[95]

As of May 2013, Neutral documents has been recognized by Japan, Czech Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, USA, Bulgaria, Poland, Israel, Estonia and Romania.[94]

According to Russian media, President of Republic of Abkhazia, Alexander Ankvab threatened to international organizations, saying during a meeting with the leadership of the foreign ministry that “international organizations that suggest the so-called neutral passports, will leave Abkhazia.”[96]

Russian involvement

Leaders of Abkhazia, Russia and South Ossetia, shortly after the 2008 war. Left to right: South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoity; Russian President Dmitry Medvedev; Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov; Abkhazian President Sergei Bagapsh.

During the Georgian–Abkhaz conflict, the Russian authorities and military supplied logistical and military aid to the separatist side.[50] Today, Russia still maintains a strong political and military influence over separatist rule in Abkhazia. Russia has also issued passports for the citizens of Abkhazia since 2000 (as Abkhazian passports cannot be used for international travel) and subsequently paid retirement pensions and other monetary benefits. More than 80% of the Abkhazian population received Russian passports by 2006. As Russian citizens living abroad, Abkhazians do not pay Russian taxes or serve in the Russian Army.[97][98] About 53,000 Abkhazian passports have been issued as of May 2007.[99]

Moscow, at certain times, had hinted that it might recognise Abkhazia and South Ossetia when the Western countries recognised the independence of Kosovo suggesting it created a precedent. Following Kosovo's declaration of independence the Russian parliament released a joint statement reading: "Now that the situation in Kosovo has become an international precedent, Russia should take into account the Kosovo scenario...when considering ongoing territorial conflicts."[100] Initially Russia continued to delay recognition of both of these republics. However, on 16 April 2008, the outgoing Russian president Vladimir Putin instructed his government to establish official ties with South Ossetia and Abkhazia, leading to Georgia's condemnation of what it described as an attempt at "de facto annexation"[101] and criticism from the European Union, NATO, and several Western governments.[102]

Later in April 2008, Russia accused Georgia of trying to exploit the NATO support in order to control Abkhazia by force, and announced it would increase its military in the region, pledging to retaliate militarily to Georgia’s efforts. The Georgian Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze had said Georgia will treat any additional troops in Abkhazia as "aggressors".[103]

In response to the Georgian invasion of South Ossetia, the Federal Assembly of Russia called an extraordinary session for 25 August 2008 to discuss recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.[104] Following a unanimous resolution that was passed by both houses of the parliament, calling on the Russian president to recognise independence of the breakaway republics,[105] Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, officially recognised both on 26 August 2008.[106][107] Russian recognition[108] was condemned by NATO nations, OSCE and European Council nations[109][110][111][112][113] due to "violation of territorial integrity and international law".[112][114] UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stated that sovereign states have to decide upon the recognition of independence.[115]

Russia has started work on the establishment of a naval base in Ochamchire by dredging the coast to allow the passage of their larger naval vessels.[116] As a response to the Georgian sea blockade of Abkhazia, in which Georgian coast guard had been detaining ships heading to and from Abkhazia, Russia began patrolling the Black Sea to protect ships and detaining ships from Georgia trespassing in Abkhazian waters.[117]

The extent of Russian influence in Abkhazia has caused some locals to say Abkhazia is under full Russian control, but they still prefer Russian influence over Georgian.[118][119][120][121]

International involvement

The UN has played various roles during the conflict and peace process: a military role through its observer mission (UNOMIG); dual diplomatic roles through the Security Council and the appointment of a Special Envoy, succeeded by a Special Representative to the Secretary-General; a humanitarian role (UNHCR and UNOCHA); a development role (UNDP); a human rights role (UNHCHR); and a low-key capacity and confidence-building role (UNV). The UN’s position has been that there will be no forcible change in international borders. Any settlement must be freely negotiated and based on autonomy for Abkhazia legitimised by referendum under international observation once the multi-ethnic population has returned.[122] According to Western interpretations the intervention did not contravene international law since Georgia, as a sovereign state, had the right to secure order on its territory and protect its territorial integrity.

The OSCE has increasingly engaged in dialogue with officials and civil society representatives in Abkhazia, especially from NGOs and the media, regarding human dimension standards and is considering a presence in Gali. OSCE expressed concern and condemnation over ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia during the 1994 Budapest Summit Decision[123] and later at the Lisbon Summit Declaration in 1996.[124]

The USA rejects the unilateral secession of Abkhazia and urges its integration into Georgia as an autonomous unit. In 1998 the USA announced its readiness to allocate up to $15 million for rehabilitation of infrastructure in the Gali region if substantial progress is made in the peace process. USAID has already funded some humanitarian initiatives for Abkhazia. The USA has in recent years significantly increased its military support to the Georgian armed forces but has stated that it would not condone any moves towards peace enforcement in Abkhazia.

On 22 August 2006, Senator Richard Lugar, then visiting Georgia's capital Tbilisi, joined the Georgian politicians in criticism of the Russian peacekeeping mission, stating that "the U.S. administration supports the Georgian government’s insistence on the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers from the conflict zones in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali district."[125]

On 5 October 2006, Javier Solana, the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union, ruled out the possibility of replacing the Russian peacekeepers with the EU force.[126] On 10 October 2006, EU South Caucasus envoy Peter Semneby noted that "Russia's actions in the Georgia spy row have damaged its credibility as a neutral peacekeeper in the EU's Black Sea neighbourhood."[127]

On 13 October 2006, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution, based on a Group of Friends of the Secretary-General draft, extending the UNOMIG mission until 15 April 2007. Acknowledging that the "new and tense situation" resulted, at least in part, from the Georgian special forces operation in the upper Kodori Valley, the resolution urged the country to ensure that no troops unauthorised by the Moscow ceasefire agreement were present in that area. It urged the leadership of the Abkhaz side to address seriously the need for a dignified, secure return of refugees and internally displaced persons and to reassure the local population in the Gali district that their residency rights and identity will be respected. The Georgian side is "once again urged to address seriously legitimate Abkhaz security concerns, to avoid steps that could be seen as threatening and to refrain from militant rhetoric and provocative actions, especially in upper Kodori Valley."

Calling on both parties to follow up on dialogue initiatives, it further urged them to comply fully with all previous agreements regarding non-violence and confidence-building, in particular those concerning the separation of forces. Regarding the disputed role of the peacekeepers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Council stressed the importance of close, effective cooperation between UNOMIG and that force and looked to all sides to continue to extend the necessary cooperation to them. At the same time, the document reaffirmed the "commitment of all Member States to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders."[128]

The HALO Trust, an international non-profit organisation that specialises in the removal of the debris of war, has been active in Abkhazia since 1999 and has completed the removal of land-mines in Sukhumi and Gali districts. It plans to finish its operations in 2007/2008 and to declare Abkhazia a "mine impact free" territory.[129]

The main NGO working in Abkhazia is the France-based international NGO Première-Urgence (PU):[130] PU has been implementing rehabilitation and economical revival programmes to support the vulnerable populations affected by the frozen conflict for almost 10 years.

International recognition

Main article: International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia

Abkhazia was an unrecognised state for most of its history. The following is a list of political entities that formally recognise Abkhazia.

UN member states

  • Russia Russia recognised Abkhazia on 26 August 2008 after the 2008 South Ossetia war.[131]
  • Nicaragua Nicaragua recognised Abkhazia on 5 September 2008.[132]
  • Venezuela Venezuela recognised Abkhazia on 10 September 2009.[133]
  • Nauru Nauru recognised Abkhazia on 15 December 2009.[134]
  • Tuvalu Tuvalu recognised Abkhazia on 18 September 2011.[135]

Partially recognised and unrecognised territories

Former recognition

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography and climate of Abkhazia
Lake Ritsa.

Abkhazia covers an area of about 8,660 km2 (3,344 sq mi) at the western end of Georgia.[4][140][141] The Caucasus Mountains to the north and the northeast divide Abkhazia and the Russian Federation. To the east and southeast, Abkhazia is bounded by the Georgian region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti; and on the south and southwest by the Black Sea.

Abkhazia is diverse geographically with lowlands stretching to the extremely mountainous north. The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range runs along the region's northern border, with its spurs – the Gagra, Bzyb and Kodori ranges – dividing the area into a number of deep, well-watered valleys. The highest peaks of Abkhazia are in the northeast and east and several exceed 4,000 meters (13,123 ft) above sea level. Abkhazia's landscape ranges from coastal forests and citrus plantations to permanent snows and glaciers in the north of the region. Although Abkhazia's complex topographic setting has spared most of the territory from significant human development, its cultivated fertile lands produce tea, tobacco, wine and fruits, a mainstay of the local agricultural sector.

View from Pitsunda cape.
Russia-Abkhazia border checkpoint

Abkhazia is richly irrigated by small rivers originating in the Caucasus Mountains. Chief of these are: Kodori, Bzyb, Ghalidzga, and Gumista. The Psou River separates the region from Russia, and the Inguri serves as a boundary between Abkhazia and Georgia proper. There are several periglacial and crater lakes in mountainous Abkhazia. Lake Ritsa is the most important of them.

The world's deepest known cave, Krubera (Voronja) Cave ("The Crows' Cave"), is located in Abkhazia's western Caucasus mountains. The latest survey (as of September 2006) has measured the vertical extent of this cave system as 2,158 meters (7,080 ft) between its highest and lowest explored points.[142]

Because of Abkhazia's proximity to the Black Sea and the shield of the Caucasus Mountains, the region's climate is very mild. The coastal areas of the republic have a subtropical climate, where the average annual temperature in most regions is around 15 °C (59 °F), and the average January temperature remains above freezing.[4] The climate at higher elevations varies from maritime mountainous to cold and summerless. Also, due to its position on the windward slopes of the Caucasus, Abkhazia receives high amounts of precipitation,[4] though humidity decreases further inland. The annual precipitation vacillates from 1,200–1,400 mm (47.2–55.1 in)[4] along the coast 1,700–3,500 mm (66.9–137.8 in) in the higher mountainous areas. The mountains of Abkhazia receive significant amounts of snow.

The lowland regions used to be covered by swaths of oak, beech, and hornbeam, which have since been cleared.[4]

There are two border crossings into Abkhazia. The southern border crossing is at the Inguri bridge, a short distance from the Georgian city of Zugdidi. The northern crossing ("Psou") is in the town of Gyachrypsh. Owing to the ongoing security situation, many foreign governments advise their citizens against travelling to Abkhazia.[143]

Government and administration

Main article: Politics of Abkhazia

Government of the Republic of Abkhazia

Main articles: Government of the Republic of Abkhazia and Elections in Abkhazia

Abkhazia is a presidential republic, and the last President of Abkhazia was Sergei Bagapsh. Bagapsh came to power following the deeply divisive October 2004 presidential election. The next election was held on 12 December 2009. Bagapsh was re-elected as President with 59.4% of the total vote.[144] Alexander Ankvab, his vice president, was appointed acting president after the former president's death on 29 May 2011.[145]

Legislative powers are vested in the People's Assembly, which consists of 35 elected members. The last parliamentary elections were held on 4 March 2007. Ethnicities other than Abkhaz (Armenians, Russians and Georgians) are believed to be under-represented in the Assembly.[63]

Most refugees from the 1992–1993 war (mainly ethnic Georgians) have not been able to return and have thus been excluded from the political process.[146]

Abkhazian officials have stated that they have given the Russian Federation the responsibility of representing their interests abroad.[147]

Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia (in exile)

Main article: Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia

The Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia is the government in exile that Georgia recognises as the legal government of Abkhazia. This pro-Georgian government maintained a foothold on Abkhazian territory, in the upper Kodori Valley from July 2006 until it was forced out by fighting in August 2008. This government is also partly responsible for the affairs of some 250,000 IDPs, forced to leave Abkhazia following the War in Abkhazia and ethnic cleansing that followed.[148][149] The current Head of the Government is Giorgi Baramia.

During the War in Abkhazia, the Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia (at the time the Georgian faction of the "Council of Ministers of Abkhazia") left Abkhazia after the Abkhaz separatist forces took control of the region’s capital Sukhumi and relocated to Georgia’s capital Tbilisi where it operated as the Government of Abkhazia in exile for almost 13 years. During this period, the Government of Abkhazia in exile, led by Tamaz Nadareishvili, was known for a hard-line stance towards the Abkhaz problem and frequently voiced their opinion that the solution to the conflict can be attained only through Georgia's military response to secessionism.[citation needed] Later, Nadareishvili's administration was implicated in some internal controversies and had not taken an active part in the politics of Abkhazia[citation needed] until a new chairman, Irakli Alasania, was appointed by President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, his envoy in the peace talks over Abkhazia.

Administrative divisions of Abkhazia

Main article: Administrative divisions of Abkhazia

The Republic of Abkhazia is divided into seven raions named after their centres: Gagra, Gudauta, Sukhumi, Ochamchira, Gulripsh, Tkvarcheli and Gali. These districts are the same as under the Soviet Union, except that the Tkvarcheli district was created only in 1995 from parts of the Ochamchira and Gali districts.

The President of the Republic appoints districts' heads from those elected to the districts' assemblies. There are elected village assemblies whose heads are appointed by the districts' heads.[63]

The Administrative subdivision of Abkhazia used by Georgia is identical to the one outlined above, except for the new Tkvarcheli district.

Military

Main articles: Military of Abkhazia and Abkhazian Air Force

The Abkhazian Armed Forces are the military of the Republic of Abkhazia. The basis of the Abkhazian armed forces was formed by the ethnically Abkhaz National Guard formed early in 1992. Most of the weapons come from the former Russian airborne division base in Gudauta.[citation needed] The Abkhazian military is primarily a ground force but includes small sea and air units. Russia has at present around 1,600 troops stationed in Abkhazia.[150]

The Abkhazian Armed Forces are composed of:

  • The Abkhazian Land Forces with a permanent force of around 5,000, but with reservists and paramilitary personnel this may increase to up to 50,000 in times of military conflict. The exact numbers and the type of equipment used remain unverifiable.
  • The Abkhazian Navy that consists of three divisions based in Sukhumi, Ochamchira and Pitsunda, but the Russian navy patrols their waters.[151]
  • The Abkhazian Air Force, a small unit consisting of a few fighter aircraft and helicopters.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Abkhazia

The economy of Abkhazia is heavily integrated with Russia and uses the Russian ruble as its currency. Abkhazia has experienced a modest economic upswing since the 2008 South Ossetia war and Russia's subsequent recognition of Abkhazia's independence. About half of Abkhazia's state budget is financed with aid money from Russia.[152]

Tourism is a key industry and, according to Abkhazia's authorities, almost a million tourists (mainly from Russia) came to Abkhazia in 2007.[153] Abkhazia also enjoys fertile lands and an abundance of agricultural products, including tea, tobacco, wine and fruits (especially tangerines and hazelnuts). Electricity is largely supplied by the Inguri hydroelectric power station located on the Inguri River between Abkhazia and Georgia (proper) and operated jointly by both parties.

In the first half of 2012, the principal trading partners of Abkhazia were Russia (64%) and Turkey (18%).[154] The CIS economic sanctions imposed on Abkhazia in 1996 are still formally in force, but Russia announced on 6 March 2008 that it would no longer participate in them, declaring them "outdated, impeding the socio-economic development of the region, and causing unjustified hardship for the people of Abkhazia". Russia also called on other CIS members to undertake similar steps,[155] but met with protests from Tbilisi and lack of support from the other CIS countries.[156]

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Abkhazia

According to the last census in 2011 Abkhazia has 240,705 inhabitants.[157]

The exact size of Abkhazia's population was unclear. According to the census carried out in 2003 it measured 215,972 people,[158] but this is contested by Georgian authorities. The Department of Statistics of Georgia estimated Abkhazia's population to be approximately 179,000 in 2003, and 178,000 in 2005 (the last year when such estimates were published in Georgia).[159] Encyclopædia Britannica estimates the population in 2007 at 180,000[160] and the International Crisis Group estimates Abkhazia's total population in 2006 to be between 157,000 and 190,000 (or between 180,000 and 220,000 as estimated by UNDP in 1998).[161]

Ethnicity

Abkhazians carrying republic flags in a parade.

The ethnic composition of Abkhazia has played a central role in the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict and is equally contested. The demographics of Abkhazia were very strongly affected by the 1992–1993 War with Georgia, which saw the expulsion and flight of over half of the republic's population, measuring 525,061 in the 1989 census.[158]

The population of Abkhazia remains ethnically very diverse, even after the 1992–1993 War. At present the population of Abkhazia is mainly made up of ethnic Abkhaz, Georgians (mostly Mingrelians), Hemshin Armenians, and Russians. Other nationalities include Ukrainians, Belarusians, Greeks, Ossetians, Tatars, Turks, and Roma.[162] Prior to the war, ethnic Georgians made up 45.7% of Abkhazia's population, however, by 1993, most Georgians and some Russians and Armenians had fled Abkhazia or had been ethnically cleansed.[160]

During the Soviet Union, the Russian, Armenian and Georgian population grew faster than the Abkhaz, due to the large-scale migration enforced especially under the rule of Joseph Stalin and Lavrenty Beria.[39] Russians moved into Abkhazia in great numbers. Later, in the 1950s and 1960s, Vazgen I and the Armenian church encouraged and funded the migration of Armenians to Abkhazia.[citation needed]

Currently, Armenians are the second largest minority group in Abkhazia (closely matching the Georgians), although their numbers decreased dramatically from 77,000 in the 1989 census to 45,000 in the 2003 census.

Diaspora

Thousands of Abkhaz, known as muhajirun, fled Abkhazia for the Ottoman Empire in the mid-19th century after resisting the Russian conquest of the Caucasus. Today, Turkey is home to the world's largest Abkhaz diaspora community. Size estimates vary – Diaspora leaders say 1 million people; Abkhaz estimates range from 150,000 to 500,000.[163][164] The Abkhazians in Turkey are almost exclusively Sunni Muslims.

Religion

Main article: Religion in Abkhazia
Religion in Abkhazia (2003)[165]
religion percent
Christianity
 
 60%
Islam
 
 16%
Abkhaz Native Religion
 
 8%
Other religions
 
 2%
Irreligious or atheist
 
 8%
Undetermined
 
 6%

Most inhabitants of Abkhazia are Christian (Eastern Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic), Sunni Muslim or irreligious, but few people who declare themselves Christian or Muslim attend religious service.[166] The Abkhaz Native Religion has undergone a strong revival in recent decades.[167] There is a very small number of adherents of Judaism, Jehovah's Witnesses and new religious movements.[165] The Jehovah's Witnesses organisation has officially been banned since 1995, though the decree is not currently enforced.[168]

According to the constitutions of both Abkhazia and Georgia, the adherents of all religions (as well as atheists) have equal rights before the law.[169]

According to a survey held in 2003, 60% of respondents identified themselves as Christian, 16% as Muslim, 8% as atheist or irreligious, 8% as adhering to the traditional Abkhazian religion or as Pagan, 2% as follower of other religions and 6% as undecided.[165]

Nationality issues

Adoption of Russian nationality

After the break-up of Soviet Union, Abkhazians continued to be the citizens of Soviet Union and kept Soviet passports even after a decade.[170]

Before 2002, Russian law allowed residents of former Soviet Union to apply for citizenship if they had not become citizens of their newly independent states. The procedure was extremely complex. The new Citizenship Law of Russia adopted on 31 May 2002 introduced a simplified procedure of citizenship acquisition for former citizens of the Soviet Union regardless of their place of residence. In Abkhazia and South Ossetia the application process was simplified even further, and people could apply even without leaving their homes. Russian nationalist non-governmental organizations with close ties to Russian officialdom simply took their papers to a nearby Russian city for processing.[171]

Abkhazians began mass acquisition of Russian passports in 2002. It is reported that the public organisation, the Congress of Russian Communities of Abkhazia, had been collecting Abkhazians’ Soviet-era travel documents. It then was sending them to consular department specially set up by Russian Foreign Ministry officials in the city of Sochi. After they were checked, Abkhazian applicants had been granted Russian citizenship. By June 25 of 2002, an estimated 150,000 people in Abkhazia had acquired the new passports, joining 50,000 who already possessed Russian citizenship.[170]

The Sukhum authorities, although officially not involved in the registration for Russian nationality process, had been openly encouraging it. Government officials said privately that the passport acquisition was agreed with President Putin’s administration during Abkhazia’s prime minister Djergenia’s visit to Moscow in May 2002.[170]

The passportization had caused outrage in Tbilisi, worsening its already shaky relations with Russia. Georgian Foreign Ministry issued a statement, insisting that Abkhazians were citizens of Georgia and calling the passport allocation an “unprecedented illegal campaign”. President Eduard Shevardnadze said that he would be asking his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, for an explanation. The speaker of parliament, Nino Burjanadze, said that she would raise the matter at the forthcoming OSCE parliamentary assembly.[170]

February 1, 2011 was the last day in post-Soviet space when passport of USSR was valid for crossing Russian-Abkhaz border. According to the staff of Abkhazia's passport and visa service, there are about 2-3 thousand people, mostly elderly people left with Soviet passports who had no chance of acquiring new documents. These people aren't able to get Russian citizenship. But they can first get an internal Abkhaz passport and then a travelling passport to visit Russia.[172]

Issue of ethnic Georgians

In 2005, citing the need to integrate ethnic Georgian residents of eastern districts of Abkhazia, then leadership of Abkhazia showed signs of softening stance towards granting of citizenship to the residents of Gali, Ochamchire and Tkvarcheli districts.[173]

According to the Abkhazian law on citizenship, ethnic Abkhazians, regardless of place of residence, can become Abkhaz citizen. Those, who are not ethnic Abkhazians, are eligible to the citizenship if they lived in Abkhazia for at least five years prior to adoption of act of independence in October, 1999. This provision aims at creating legal hurdle in obtaining Abkhaz passports to those ethnic Georgians, who fled Abkhazia as a result of 1992-1993 armed conflict, and who then returned to Gali district. Abkhazian legislation forbids citizens of Abkhazia from holding dual citizenship with any other state, apart from Russia.[174]

Ethnic Georgians, who have returned to the Gali district, and want to obtain Abkhaz passports, according to Abkhazian law, should undergo lengthy procedures, which also include a requirement to submit a documented proof that they renounced their Georgian citizenship.[174]

President Bagapsh was inclined to regard Georgians in Gali as "Georgianized Abkhazians." According to Bagapsh, these were actually ethnic Abkhaz people who were "Georgianized" during the long process of the Georgianization of Abkhazia that culminated during the rule of Joseph Stalin and Lavrenti Beria. So in his official speeches, Bagapsh often added the Gali Georgians to population estimates of the Abkhaz, disregarding the fact that they still thought of themselves as ethnic Georgians, rather than Abkhaz.[175]

In early 2013 the process of passportization of Ethnic Georgians came under scrutiny of the Abkhaz opposition groups, who turned this issue into one of the central topics of the breakaway region’s internal politics and issuing of passports was suspended in May. Opposition claimed that “massive” passportization, involving granting citizenship to ethnic Georgians in eastern districts, was fraught with risk of “losing sovereignty and territorial integrity.” According to Apsnipress, Stanislav Lakoba, secretary of Abkhaz security council, said that “We are facing the process of oily and total Georgianization of Abkhazia.”[174]

According to some reports emerged in mid-2013, the directors of Georgian schools in Gali were ordered by Sukhumi authorities to transfer their schools to Russian-language education.[176]

On September 18 of 2013 Parliament of Republic of Abkhazia adopted a resolution instructing the prosecutor’s office to carry out a “sweeping” probe into passport offices of the interior ministry and, in case of revealing wrongdoings in distribution of passports, to refer these violations to the ministry of internal affairs for the purpose of “annulment of illegally issued passports.” Abkhaz officials announced that significant number of residents of Gali, Ochamchire and Tkvarcheli districts received Abkhaz passports while at the same time retaining their Georgian citizenship, which constituted "violation of law on Abkhaz citizenship". According to the Abkhaz officials, more than 26,000 passports were distributed in Gali, Tkvarcheli and Ochamchire districts, including about 23,000 of them were given out since Russian recognition of Abkhazia's independence in August, 2008.[173]

These political debates has caused concerns in ethnic Georgian population of Abkhazia who reside mainly in Gali district that they would be stripped of Abkhazian citizenship and thus be forced to leave Abkhazia again.[173]

In October 2013 Alexander Ankvab signed a document about firing Stanislav Lakoba. The document about firing Lakoba didn’t state any reasons for the decision, but Lakoba saw it as related to his political position towards granting citizenship to Georgians living in Gali. Lakoba claimed that according to data from Abkhaz Security Council, 129 local people in Gali fought against Abkhazia. Local political parties and the coordination council of civil organizations expressed concern about Lakoba’s dismissal. They claimed that by dismissing him, the president "made an illegal process legal" – giving Abkhazian passports to Georgian citizens.[177]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Abkhazia

The written Abkhaz literature appeared relatively recently, in the beginning of the 20th century. However, Abkhaz share the Nart sagas, series of tales about mythical heroes, with other Caucasian peoples. The Abkhaz alphabet was created in the 19th century. The first newspaper in Abkhaz, called Abkhazia and edited by Dmitry Gulia, appeared in 1917.

Arguably the most famous Abkhaz writers are Fazil Iskander, who wrote mostly in Russian and Bagrat Shinkuba a poet.

Football remains the most popular sport in Abkhazia. Other popular sports include basketball, boxing and wrestling.

Abkhazia has its own amateur Abkhazian football league since 1994. The league is not a part of any international football union.

See also

Main articles: Outline of Abkhazia and Index of Abkhazia-related articles

References

  1. ^ Site programming: Denis Merkushev. "Акт о государственной независимости Республики Абхазия". Abkhaziagov.org. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  2. ^ "Апсныпресс – государственное информационное агенство Республики Абхазия". Apsnypress.info. Archived from the original on 28 May 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Abkhazia: Review of Events for the Year 1996". UNPO. 31 January 1997. Archived from the original on 5 June 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Hoiberg, Dale H., ed. (2010). "Abkhazia". Encyclopedia Britannica. Vol. I: A-ak Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, IL: Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-59339-837-8.
  5. ^ "Georgia". Citypopulation. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  6. ^ "Численность населения Абхазии составляет 240 705 человек". apsnypress.info. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  7. ^ "Abkhazia calculated GDP – News". GeorgiaTimes.info. 7 July 2010. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
  8. ^ "Abkhazia remains available by Georgian phone codes". today.az. 6 January 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  9. ^ Art. 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Abkhazia
  10. ^ Olga Oliker, Thomas S. Szayna. Faultlines of Conflict in Central Asia and the South Caucasus: Implications for the U.S. Army. Rand Corporation, 2003, ISBN 978-0-8330-3260-7.
  11. ^ Abkhazia: ten years on. By Rachel Clogg, Conciliation Resources, 2001.
  12. ^ Emmanuel Karagiannis. Energy and Security in the Caucasus. Routledge, 2002. ISBN 978-0-7007-1481-0.
  13. ^ The Guardian. Georgia up in arms over Olympic cash
  14. ^ Barry, Ellen (15 December 2009). "Abkhazia Is Recognised – by Nauru". New York Times. Archived from the original on 19 December 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2009. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ a b c "Абхазия, Южная Осетия и Приднестровье признали независимость друг друга и призвали всех к этому же" (in Russian). Newsru. 17 November 2006. Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ "Cтраны , признавшие независимость Республики Абхазия" (in Russian). Embassy of the Republic of Abkhazia in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  17. ^ Resolution of the Parliament of Georgia declaring Abkhazia and South Ossetia occupied territories, 28 August 2008.
  18. ^ Abkhazia, S.Ossetia Formally Declared Occupied Territory. Civil Georgia. 2008-08-28. Template:WebCite
  19. ^ Luke Coffey (1 June 2010). "Georgia and Russia: The occupation too many have forgotten".
  20. ^ Ethnic Conflicts in the Caucasus 1988-1994
  21. ^ Otar Kajaia, 2001–2004, Megrelian-Georgian Dictionary (entry abzhua).
  22. ^ Otar Kajaia, 2001–2004, Megrelian-Georgian Dictionary (entry saapxazo).
  23. ^ Braund, David (1994), Georgia in Antiquity: A History of Colchis and Transcaucasian Iberia, 550 BC – AD 562, Oxford: Clarendon, p. 359.
  24. ^ Grigor, Ronald, The Making of the Georgian Nation, SUNY, p. 13.
  25. ^ Kaufman, Stuart J, Modern Hatreds: The Symbolic Politics of Ethnic War, p. 91.
  26. ^ a b c d e f "BBC News – Regions and territories: Abkhazia". BBC News. London: BBC. 22 November 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  27. ^ Olson, James S; Pappas, Lee Brigance; Pappas, Nicholas CJ. An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of the Russian and Soviet Empires. Geenwood. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-313-27497-8.
  28. ^ Strabo , in agreement with Stephan of Byzantium quoting Hellanicus[citation needed]
  29. ^ http://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=528704&fileOId=624449
  30. ^ Smith, Graham; Vivien Law (1998). Nation-building in the post-Soviet borderlands. Cambridge University Press. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-521-59968-9.
  31. ^ Alexei Zverev, Ethnic Conflicts in the Caucasus; Graham Smith, Edward A Allworth, Vivien A Law et al., pages 56–58; Abkhaz by W. Barthold [V. Minorsky] in the Encyclopaedia of Islam; The Georgian-Abkhaz State (summary), by George Anchabadze, in: Paul Garb, Arda Inal-Ipa, Paata Zakareishvili, editors, Aspects of the Georgian-Abkhaz Conflict: Cultural Continuity in the Context of Statebuilding, Volume 5, 26–28 August 2000.
  32. ^ Houtsma, M. Th.; E. van Donzel (1993). E.J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam 1913–1936. BRILL. p. 71. ISBN 978-90-04-09796-4.
  33. ^ Lortkipanidze M., The Abkhazians and Abkhazia, Tbilisi 1990.
  34. ^ a b c "Some of the issues of Russian imperial language policy in Abkhazia and its results (part II)". Experts' Club. 28 June 2010.
  35. ^ "Definition of status", Constitution of SSR Abkhazia, 1925, Article 3, archived from the original on 27 June 2007
  36. ^ Neproshin, A.Ju. (16–17 May 2006), Абхазия. Проблемы международного признания (in Russian), MGIMO {{citation}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link).
  37. ^ Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. London: Europa Publications Limited. 1999. p. 363. ISBN 978-1-85743-058-5.
  38. ^ Hewitt, George (1999). The Abkhazians: a handbook. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-312-21975-8.
  39. ^ a b "JRL Research & Analytical Supplement ~ JRL 8226, Issue No. 24 • May 2004. Special Issue; The Georgian-Abkhaz Conflict: Past, Present, Future". Cdi.org. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  40. ^ Hewitt, George, Abkhaz – A Comprehensive Self-Tutor, p. 17.
  41. ^ Conciliation Resources. Georgia-Abkhazia, Chronology[dead link‍]
  42. ^ Парламентская газета (Parlamentskaya Gazeta). Референдум о сохранении СССР. Грузия строит демократию на беззаконии. Георгий Николаев, 17 March 2006 Template:Ru icon
  43. ^ Coppieters, Bruno et al.(2005), Statehood and security: Georgia after the Rose Revolution, p. 384. American Academy of Arts and Sciences, ISBN 978-0-262-03343-5
  44. ^ 1921 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Georgia: Chapter XI, Articles 107–108 (adopted by the Constituent Assembly of Georgia 21 February 1921): "Abkhasie (district of Soukhoum), ..., which are integral parts of the Georgian Republic, enjoy autonomy in the administration of their affairs. The statute concerning the autonomy of [these] districts ... will be the object of special legislation". Regional Research Centre. Retrieved on 25 November 2008.
  45. ^ Svante E. Cornell (2001), Small Nations and Great Powers: A Study of Ethnopolitical Conflict in the Caucasus, pp. 345–9. Routledge, ISBN 978-0-7007-1162-8.
  46. ^ a b On Ruins of Empire: Ethnicity and Nationalism in the Former Soviet Union, pg 72, by Georgiy I. Mirsky, published by Greenwood Publishing Group, sponsored by the London School of Economics
  47. ^ Full Report by Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch. Georgia/Abkhazia. Violations of the laws of war and Russia's role in the conflict Helsinki, March 1995. p. 22
  48. ^ C.J.Shivers (15 September 2004). "The Chechen's Story: From Unrivaled Guerrilla Leader to the Terror of Russia". The New York Times. New York Times. Retrieved 6 April 2011.
  49. ^ Georgia - UNOMIG - Background
  50. ^ a b c d e f Full Report by Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch. Georgia/Abkhazia. Violations of the laws of war and Russia's role in the conflict Helsinki, March 1995
  51. ^ "CSCE Budapest Document 1994, Budapest Decisions, Regional Issues". .umn.edu. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  52. ^ Lisbon OSCE Summit Declaration[dead link‍]
  53. ^ OSCE.org[dead link‍]
  54. ^ Population censuses in Abkhazia: 1886, 1926, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979, 1989, 2003 Template:Ru icon
  55. ^ The Guns of August 2008, Russia's War in Georgia, Svante Cornell & Frederick Starr, p 27
  56. ^ US State Department, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1993, February 1994, pp. 120
  57. ^ Chervonnaia, Svetlana Mikhailovna. Conflict in the Caucasus: Georgia, Abkhazia, and the Russian Shadow., p 10
  58. ^ a b Abkhazia Today.
  59. ^ Conflict in the Caucasus: Georgia, Abkhazia, and the Russian Shadow by S. A. Chervonnaia and Svetlana Mikhailovna Chervonnaia, pp 12–13
  60. ^ Washington shames Moscow over 'occupied' Abkhazia
  61. ^ UN High Commissioner for refugees. Background note on the Protection of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Georgia remaining outside Georgia, Archived 2007-06-28 at the Wayback Machine
  62. ^ Report of the Representative of the Secretary-General on the human rights of internally displaced persons – Mission to Georgia. United Nations: 2006.
  63. ^ a b c Abkhazia Today. The International Crisis Group Europe Report N°176, 15 September 2006, page 10. Retrieved on 30 May 2007. Free registration needed to view full report [dead link‍]
  64. ^ "Regions and territories: Abkhazia". BBC News. 15 December 2009. Archived from the original on 20 April 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  65. ^ "Video shows Russian MiG downing Georgian UAV". Airforcetimes.com. 23 April 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  66. ^ "Video on". Youtube. Archived from the original on 6 May 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  67. ^ "Georgia 'started unjustified war'". BBC News. 30 September 2009. Archived from the original on 20 April 2010. Retrieved 29 March 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  68. ^ "Report blames Georgia for starting war with Russia: newspapers : Europe World". Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  69. ^ "Russia in operation to storm Abkhazia gorge". UK: Reuters. 10 August 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  70. ^ "Russia recognises Abkhazian & South Ossetian independence". Russia today. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  71. ^ Nowak, David; Torchia, Christopher (14 August 2008), "Russia: Georgia can 'forget' regaining provinces", ABC News, The Associated Press.
  72. ^ "Abkhaz Leadership, Opposition Exchange Accusations", Caucasus Report, Radio Free Europe, 24 May 2009.
  73. ^ "Вице-Президент Рауль Хаджимба Ушел в Отставку" (in Russian). Apsnypress. 28 May 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  74. ^ "Chavez recognises Georgia rebels". BBC News. 10 September 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  75. ^ Chavez Backs Russian Recognition of Georgian Regions Reuters. Retrieved 08-29, 2008.
  76. ^ Harding, Luke (14 December 2009). "Tiny Nauru struts world stage by recognising breakaway republics". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 17 December 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2009. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  77. ^ "Belarus says to recognise Abkhazia, S. Ossetia by weekend". En.rian.ru. 28 August 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  78. ^ "Diplomat: Belarus to recognise Abkhazia, South Ossetia soon". News.xinhuanet.com. 29 August 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  79. ^ Chervonnaia, Svetlana Mikhailovna. Conflict in the Caucasus: Georgia, Abkhazia, and the Russian Shadow. Gothic Image Publications, 1994.
  80. ^ The Abkhazia Conflict. U.S. Department of State Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs. 28 July 2005. [dead link‍]
  81. ^ Vladimir Socor (7 February 2006), Moscow kills Boden paper, threatens to terminate UNOMIG in Georgia. Eurasia Daily Monitor, Volume 3, Number 26. [dead link‍]
  82. ^ Breakaway Abkhazia seeks recognition, Al-Jazeera, 18 October 2006.
  83. ^ UN Security Council Resolution 1808. 15 April 2008.
  84. ^ Resolution of the OSCE Budapest Summit, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, 6 December 1994
  85. ^ Georgia-Abkhazia: Profiles. Accord: an international review of peace initiatives. Reconciliation Resources. Retrieved 2 April 2007.
  86. ^ General Assembly adopts resolution recognising right of return by refugees, internally displaced persons to Abkhazia, Georgia, 15 May 2008.
  87. ^ Saakashvili Outlines Tbilisi’s Abkhaz Initiatives. Civil Georgia. 28 March 2008.
  88. ^ Burjanadze: Russia Behind Sokhumi’s No to New Proposals. Civil Georgia. 29 March 2008.
  89. ^ OSCE PA Concerned over Russian Moves Civil Georgia. 3 July 2008. [dead link‍]
  90. ^ OSCE Parliamentary Assembly from 5 to 9 July 2012, Final Declaration and Resolutions
  91. ^ "Bill on Occupied Territories Signed into Law". Civil.ge. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  92. ^ "THE LAW OF GEORGIA ON OCCUPIED TERRITORIES" (PDF). 23 October 2008.
  93. ^ "Law on occupied territories of Georgia (en.)". Venice.coe.int. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  94. ^ a b "Romania recognized neutral Georgian passports for Abkhazian and South Ossetian residents". Trend.AZ. 2 May 2013.
  95. ^ "Moscow Blasts U.S.-Georgia 'Neutral Passports'". RIA Novosti. 7 June 2012.
  96. ^ "Abkhazian leader opposed to neutral passports". DFWATCH STAFF. 19 January 2012.
  97. ^ Abkhazia Today. The International Crisis Group Europe Report N°176, 15 September 2006, page 10. Retrieved on 30 May 2007. Free registration needed to view full report [dead link‍]
  98. ^ Archived 2007-10-13 at the Wayback Machine of Sergey Shamba, Moskovskij Komsomolets, 6 July 2006 Template:Ru icon
  99. ^ "К концу 2007 года 90 процентов граждан Абхазии должны получить "национальные" паспорта — Президент", abkhaziagov.org, 29 May 2007 Template:Ru icon
  100. ^ UNOMIG, Recognition may come "this year", South Ossetia's leaders says – report, 21 February 2008
  101. ^ Georgia angered by Russian move. BBC News. 16 April 2008.
  102. ^ In Quotes: International Reaction to Russia’s Abkhaz, S.Ossetian Move. Civil Georgia. 19 April 2008. [dead link‍]
  103. ^ Georgia-Russia tensions ramped up.. The BBC News. 30 April 2008.
  104. ^ Halpin, Tony (20 August 2008). "Russia to recognise breakaway region's independence". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 4 September 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  105. ^ "Duma calls for S. Ossetia independence". Financial Times. 25 August 2008. Archived from the original on 29 August 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  106. ^ BBC News: "Russia recognises Georgian rebels", 26 August 2008.
  107. ^ Russia recognizes independence of Georgia's rebel regions, Earth Times, 2008-08-26. Retrieved 2008-08-26. [dead link‍]
  108. ^ "'West Ignored Us on Kosovo', says Medvedev". Balkaninsight.com. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  109. ^ "Scheffer 'Rejects' Russia's Move, Civil.ge, 26 August 2008". Civil.ge. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  110. ^ "CoE, PACE Chairs Condemn Russia's Move, Civil Georgia, 26 August 2008". Civil.ge. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  111. ^ "OSCE Chair Condemns Russia's Recognition of Abkhazia, S.Ossetia, Civil Georgia, 26 August 2008". Civil.ge. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  112. ^ a b "West condemns Russia over Georgia, BBC, 26 August 2008". BBC News. 26 August 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  113. ^ Tensions build as U.S. ship arrives in Georgia, CNN, 29 August 2008[dead link‍]
  114. ^ Civil.ge, CoE, PACE Chairs Condemn Russia’s Move, 26 August 2008
  115. ^ Resolving Georgian crisis may be harder after Russian recognition move, UN News Centre.
  116. ^ Russia's build-up in the Black Sea. Paltelegraph.com (2009-09-06). Retrieved on 30 May 2011.
  117. ^ "Russia to scour Abkhazian waters for Georgian ships". Russiatoday.com. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  118. ^ Brian Whitmore (19 June 2009). "Abkhazia and the Perils of Independence". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
  119. ^ Anna Nemtsova (17 August 2010). "The Republic of Spies: How Russia's FSB Colonized Abkhazia". Newsweek.
  120. ^ Carl Schreck (25 August 2010). "Abkhazia: From Georgia's Pan into Russia's Fire". TheNational (UAE news organization).
  121. ^ Valery Dzutsev (11 June 2010). "More Disagreements Emerge Between Abkhaz and Russian Interests". Eurasia Daily Monitor. Georgian Daily.
  122. ^ Resolutions 849, 854, 858, 876, 881 and 892 adopted by the UN Security Council
  123. ^ From the Resolution of the OSCE Budapest Summit, 6 December 1994 Lisbon OSCE Summit Declaration
  124. ^ Lisbon Summit Declaration of the OSCE, 2–3 December 1996
  125. ^ U.S. Senator Urges Russian Peacekeepers’ Withdrawal From Georgian Breakaway Republics. (MosNews).
  126. ^ Solana fears Kosovo 'precedent' for Abkhazia, South Ossetia. (International Relations and Security Network).
  127. ^ Russia 'not neutral' in Black Sea conflict, EU says, EUobserver, 10 October 2006.
  128. ^ Security Council extends Georgia Mission until 15 April 2007, The UN Department of Public Information, 13 October 2006.
  129. ^ The HALO Trust. Abkhazia[dead link‍]
  130. ^ "Première-Urgence NGO, France". Premiere-urgence.org. 16 December 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  131. ^ "Russia welcomes Nicaragua's recognition of South Ossetia, Abkhazia". China Daily. 6 September 2008. Archived from the original on 28 May 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  132. ^ Ortega, Daniel; Manuel Coronel Kautz (3 September 2009). "DECRETO No. 47-2008" (PDF) (in Spanish). Gobierno de Reconciliación y Unidad Nacional. Retrieved 19 September 2009.
  133. ^ Template:Ru icon "Венесуэла признает независимость Абхазии и Южной Осетии"
  134. ^ "Pacific island recognizes Abkhazia's independence". RIA Novosti. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
  135. ^ "Tuvalu becomes sixth state to recognize Abkhazia". RIAN. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
  136. ^ "Cтраны , признавшие независимость Республики Абхазия | ПОСОЛЬСТВО РЕСПУБЛИКИ АБХАЗИЯ В БОЛИВАРИАНСКОЙ РЕСПУБЛИКЕ ВЕНЕСУЭЛА". Abjasia.org. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  137. ^ "Vanuatu's recognition to the Republic of Abkhazia". Government of Vanuatu. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  138. ^ "Vanuatu scraps recognition of Georgia breakaway region". 20 May 2013. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
  139. ^ "Georgia Says Vanuatu Has Withdrawn Recognition of Abkhazia". Bloomberg. 20 May 2013.
  140. ^ "FACTBOX-Key facts on Georgian rebel region Abkhazia". AlertNet. 17 February 2010. Archived from the original on 3 December 2010. Retrieved 7 November 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  141. ^ "Abkhazia". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  142. ^ "World's Deepest Caves List from The National Speleological Society". Caverbob.com. 4 June 2010. Archived from the original on 28 May 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  143. ^ Travel advice by country: Georgia. The United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Retrieved on 2 July 2007; Consular Information Sheet: Georgia. The U.S. Department of State. Retrieved from Allsafetravels.com on 2 July 2007; Travel advisories: Georgia. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand. Retrieved from Allsafetravels.com on 2 July 2007; Travel advice: Georgia. Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Retrieved from Allsafetravels.com on 2 July 2007; Travel advice: Georgia, Irish Government, Department of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved on 2 July 2007. [dead link‍]
  144. ^ Barry, Ellen (13 December 2009). "President of Abkhazia Re-elected by Wide Margin". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 December 2009.
  145. ^ "Abkhazia President Sergei Bagapsh dies at 62". BBC. 29 May 2011. Archived from the original on 29 May 2011. Retrieved 29 May 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  146. ^ Zarkovic Bookman, Milica (1997). The Demographic Struggle for Power: The Political Economy of Demographic Engineering in the Modern World. ISBN 978-0-7146-4732-6.
  147. ^ Halpin, Tony (30 August 2008). "Kremlin announces that South Ossetia will join "one united Russian state"". Times Online. London. Archived from the original on 3 September 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  148. ^ Birgitte Refslund Sørensen, Marc Vincent (2001), Caught Between Borders: Response Strategies of the Internally Displaced, pp. 234–5. Pluto Press, ISBN 978-0-7453-1818-9.
  149. ^ On Ruins of Empire: Ethnicity and Nationalism in the Former Soviet Union Georgiy I. Mirsky, p. 72.
  150. ^ 13:56. "Russland legitimiert Beziehungen zu Abchasien und Südossetien". De.rian.ru. Retrieved 22 June 2010. {{cite web}}: |author= has numeric name (help)
  151. ^ John Pike (13 May 2010). "Russian patrol boats arrive in Abkhazia to guard border". Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  152. ^ Nikolaus von Twickel (26 August 2011). "No Clear Frontrunner as Abkhazia Goes to Poll". The Moscow Times.
  153. ^ Kommersant-Dengi, Тяжелая экономическая независимость (Hard Economical Independence), 08.09.2008 Template:Ru icon
  154. ^ "Основными торговыми партнерами Абхазии продолжают оставаться Россия и Турция". Apsnypress. 27 July 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2012.
  155. ^ "Russian Federation Withdraws from Regime of Restrictions Established in 1996 for Abkhazia". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. 6 March 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
  156. ^ Russia expands economic ties with Abkhazia, Georgia angry, CIS idle. Itar-Tass, 09.04.2008. [dead link‍]
  157. ^ Population census in Abkhazia 2011
  158. ^ a b Population censuses in Abkhazia: 1886, 1926, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979, 1989, 2003 Template:Ru icon Georgian and Mingrelian figures have been conflated, as most of the "Georgians" were ethnically Mingrelian.
  159. ^ Statistical Yearbook of Georgia 2005: Population, Table 2.1, p. 33, Department for Statistics, Tbilisi (2005)
  160. ^ a b "Abkhazia." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online 9 September 2008.
  161. ^ Abkhazia Today. The International Crisis Group Europe Report N°176, 15 September 2006, page 9. Free registration needed to view full report [dead link‍]
  162. ^ Human Rights Watch (2011). Living in Limbo: The Rights of Ethnic Georgian Returnees to the Gali District of Abkhazia. Human Rights Watch. p. 9. ISBN 1-56432-790-6Template:Inconsistent citations{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  163. ^ Abkhazia's Diaspora: Dreaming of Home. Eurasianet.org (2009-03-08). Retrieved on 30 May 2011.
  164. ^ Circassians in Turkey rally for their rights. Hurriyetdailynews.com. Retrieved on 30 May 2011.
  165. ^ a b c Александр Крылов. ЕДИНАЯ ВЕРА АБХАЗСКИХ "ХРИСТИАН" И "МУСУЛЬМАН". Особенности религиозного сознания в современной Абхазии. Portal-credo.ru (2004-03-17). Retrieved on 30 May 2011.
  166. ^ Hewitt, George (1998). The Abkhazians: a handbook. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 205. ISBN 978-0-312-21975-8.
  167. ^ "Russia: Other Points of View: ABKHAZIA versus GEORGIA: Implications for U.S. Policy toward Russia". Russiaotherpointsofview.com. 30 March 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  168. ^ Georgia: International Religious Freedom Report 2005. The United States Department of State. Retrieved 24 May 2007.
  169. ^ Constitution of the Republic of Abkhazia, art. 12 Template:Ru icon
  170. ^ a b c d Inal Khashig (27 June 2002). "Abkhaz Rush For Russian Passports". Institute for War & Peace Reporting.
  171. ^ "Russian Federation: Legal Aspects of War in Georgia". Library of Congress.
  172. ^ Anton Krivenuk (1 February 2011). "Abkhaz Rush For Russian Passports". GeorgiaTimes.
  173. ^ a b c Olesya Vartanyan (24 September 2013). "Abkhaz Decision on Passports Leaves Many Georgians in Gali Worried". Civil.ge.
  174. ^ a b c "Sokhumi Suspends Issuing Abkhaz Passports to Ethnic Georgians". Civil.ge. 14 May 2013.
  175. ^ Giorgi Menabde (3 October 2013). "Authorities in Abkhazia Plan to Strip Georgians of Citizenship". Jamestown Foundation.
  176. ^ Сухуми требует от директоров грузинских школ перехода на русскоязычное обучение
  177. ^ "Top Abkhazian security official dismissed". DFWATCH STAFF. 30 October 2013.

Template:Link FA Template:Link FA Template:Link GA

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Abkhazia&oldid=599922338"