Tbilisi downbeat by Abkhazian “president’s” remarks on Russian Navy base

The Georgian Foreign Ministry has demanded that Russia abide by the ceasefire agreements signed in August 2008 through mediation of the European Union (EU).

This is how the Georgian Foreign Ministry reacted to the statement of the "president" of Abkhazia Aslan Bzhania that the "republic" has agreed with Moscow on the placement of a permanent stationing point of the Russian Navy on its territory, Caliber.Az reports, citing Georgian media.

"We express our concern in connection with statements by the Russian occupation regime in Sukhumi about the deployment of an additional Russian military base in Georgia's occupied territories and the inclusion of Abkhazia, an integral region of Georgia, in the integration processes initiated by Russia.

Such actions constitute a flagrant violation of Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity and another provocative attempt aimed at legitimising the illegal occupation of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region.

The international community firmly supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia.

We call on the Russian Federation to respect international obligations, to implement the ceasefire agreement concluded on 12 August 2008 with the mediation of the European Union and to stop the illegal occupation of Georgia's inalienable regions," the statement said.