Austria: Putin is continuing to “rotate the screw” of further escalation with Abkhaz deal

Parliament of Austria is rejecting the new alliance between Russia and Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia region and says it would continue to be a strong supporter of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia.

In a special statement the Vice President of the Parliament of Austria Karlheinz Kopf today said Russia’s President was continuing to "rotate the screw” of further escalation of the tense situation following Russia’s ‘Alliance and Strategic Partnership’ with Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia region.

"The Russian President has tried to destabilise post-Soviet countries [and] now focused on the West,” Kopf said today.

The Austrian official emphasized that by singing the alliance document, Russia had violated international law in respect of the territorial integrity of former Soviet states.

"By doing this, the President of Russia makes the success of deescalating efforts impossible. Eastern Ukraine, Transnistria, Nagorno-Karabakh or Abkhazia, in all those regions of former Soviet states Vladimir Putin took obvious control and openly supports the separatists. By doing this he tried to weaken and pressure the western-oriented and independent Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Azerbaijan,” Kopf said.

He noted Austria had "an intensive relationship” with Russia and such developments were "especially regrettable”.

"This new provocation by Putin should be seriously condemned and [this leads to] the distant prospect of postponing the abolition of sanctions against Russia,” he said.