27 years since Abkhaz war: Georgia says dialogue is the only way to resolve conflict
About 300,000 ethnic Georgians had to leave their homes in Abkhazia. Photo: Mike Goldwater.
Tweet 
Share
27 years have passed since the armed conflict in Georgia’s Russia-occupied region of Abkhazia.
Per tradition, Georgian officials and the public have gathered at Heroes Square, in the center of Tbilisi to pay tribute to servicemen who gave their lives for the territorial integrity of Georgia.
Minister of Reconciliation Ketevan Tsikhelashvili paid tribute to the memory of victims of the war and said the conflict affected both Georgia and Abkhazia equally, while Russia took advantage of it.
This is why I think there is no alternative to dialogue,” Tsikhelashvili said.
Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze said it was a war ‘between brothers’ and Georgia and Abkhazia should overcome the pain together.
Mother greeting her son whom she thought had died. Photo: Mike Goldwater.
The Georgian and Abkhaz people have common roots and we should also have a common future,” he stated.
Georgian Defence Minister Levan Izoria has also commemorated heroes of the Abkhaz war. He also said there is no alternative other than a ‘peaceful resolution to the conflict.’
[A peaceful resolution] is the key principle of our policy and we will continue its implementation,” Izoria stated.
The Abkhaz war lasted 13 months and 13 days and ended with the loss of the capital of Abkhazia, Sokhumi, on September 27, 1993, which was preceded by negotiations between Georgia and Abkhazia with the mediation of Russia.
On July 27, 1993 the Sochi agreement was signed but Abkhaz forces violated the terms and opened fire while Georgian troops were withdrawing from the region.
About 300,000 ethnic Georgians had to leave their homes in Abkhazia. Approximately 10,000 people lost their lives in the armed conflict.
September 27, 1993 was the day when tens of thousands of people died, hundreds of thousands of people became internally displaced (IDPs) within their own homeland, and Tbilisi lost control over the Abkhazia region in north-western Georgia.
Today Georgia is commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Abkhazia War, which ended with the area becoming a breakaway region of Georgia and leaving hundreds of thousands displaced.
September 27, 1993 was the day when tens of thousands of people died, hundreds of thousands of people became internally displaced (IDPs) within their own homeland, and Tbilisi lost control of Abkhazia region in north-western Georgia.
Georgia is commemorating the 23rd anniversary of the Abkhazia war, which ended with the area becoming a breakaway region of Georgia and leaving hundreds of thousands displaced.
A part of the highland Abkhaz village Aibgha, located on the official Georgia-Russia border, has been registered as Russian territory. The village is located in a district of the Abkhaz town of Gagra and opinions on which country it belongs to have been controversial for years as the Russia-Georgia border divides it into two parts.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili posthumously awarded 24 veterans of the Abkhaz War on Saint George’s Day yesterday. In her address, President Zurabishvili spoke of the recent developments in the country as well, saying it is no time for internal confrontations now.